Sledgehammer
by VanillaDaisies
Summary: A socially awkward Preppie torn between a psycho and a greaseball, a boy seemingly being stalked by the annoying and flamboyant Gord, and a girl whose saviour from unwanted social situations is the Greaser King himself. Nobody is getting out of this unscathed. Gary/OC/Peanut, Gord/Male!OC, Johnny/OC About 10 years too late to the Bully party, I know.
1. How Do You Like Your Eggs?

_**Recently re-purchased the game on PS4 and felt like doing a fic for it. I'm not really expecting anyone to read this since Bully is kinda old news now but if anyone does read it, a review would be greatly appreciated since I'm a review whore ;)**_

* * *

Sledgehammer

Chapter 1 – How do you like your eggs?

* * *

Pink.

It was shockingly pink. Pink wallpaper, pink floors, pink flowers, pink ornaments, pink bed-sheets. It was just infuriatingly girly. Even the feminine floral scent that lingered throughout the entire dorm was sickly and sweet, and Flora almost found herself feeling suffocated by the intense aroma. Still, it was definitely an upgrade from the odour that had invaded her nostrils upon first walking through the Bullworth school gates. Apparently the use of stink bombs within the school grounds, though against the rules, was quite common. In fact, it seemed that the use of prank-centred products was a regular thing amongst Bullworth students, which of course had immediately caused alarm bells to sound within the raven-haired girls mind. She'd barely been at this school for an hour and she could already tell that finding any peace and quiet within the vicinity would be extremely hard to come by. Not only that, but as Flora had made her way back from the principal's office after a long lecture on school rules and also her appearance (apparently having the ends of your hair dip-dyed white was not acceptable according to Dr. Crabblesnitch, not that Flora was about to change that), the staff and prefects of the school seemed to pay no heed to the bullying and chaos that seemed to descend on the school grounds. Foul language, stink bombs, bullying and theft of school supplies apparently required no punishment.

Flora heaved a sigh as she wondered what kind of school she had been enrolled into by her parents. They believed that boarding school would help her become more independent and also allow her a little bit of extra freedom. That, and the enrolment fee was fairly low in comparison to other boarding schools. However, as she sat in her hideously pink dorm room, though initially she had been excited about starting a new school, she was failing to find any positive factors about her new surroundings. It was only when she noticed that she had an hour left before her first ever class (she couldn't believe they were actually making her attend classes so soon after her arrival) that she realised she'd better change into her uniform and perhaps make a start on unpacking her belongings. The uniform itself wasn't so bad. Flora had been given a high waisted green-tartan skirt, and a regular white Bullworth school shirt and tie, which of course she had rolled the sleeves up to her elbows to free her hands more. In an attempt to cover her legs from the bitter autumn air she'd decided to don a pair of over-the-knee white socks. Though an old-fashioned uniform, she supposed it could have been worse. She busied herself by beginning to hang her regular clothes up in the wardrobe.

"Wow! Y'know, for poor people clothes these are actually kinda cute,"

This sentence was followed by a loud shriek escaping Flora's lips as she spun around quickly, startled by the sudden company. Stood rooting through her suitcase was a tall, elegant girl, dressed in a rather fancy, blue uniform. Much more expensive than the one Flora was wearing. She blinked at the intruder, not sure if she was more surprised at the brunette's sudden appearance or at the fact that she'd openly referred to her as poor without a second thought.

"D-did you just call me poor?"

"Oh, sorry, was that rude? Daddy tells me I should really think before I speak," The girl stated, sounding perfectly cheerful, as though this was a completely normal way to start a conversation with a stranger, "Anyways, I'm Pinky. My rooms just next door, I thought I'd come take a peek at the newbie. I'd shake your hand but I've actually just washed mine...but it's nice to meet you!' She finished by sending Flora a wide smile, seemingly not realising how insulting her words were. Lucky for her, however, Flora was rather chill.

"...Right...okay...I'm Flora, it's nice to meet you too, I suppose," Flora replied, muttering the last two words so that they would go unnoticed. In all honesty she was too afraid to say much else in case she received more backhanded compliments from the apparent daddy's girl. "So is everyone here like you or..?"

Pinky laughed and shook her head, "Oh, no, don't worry! There are plenty of lower-class students around here who are more suited to your social standing. Ooh, how about I introduce you to a few of th- Oh my gosh, is that _Aquaberry_!?" Flora accidentally let out an exasperated groan at Pinky's statement upon noticing yet another fancy-uniform wearing girl enter the room. The light-honey brown haired girl donned a uniform consisting of a high-waisted blue skirt, which Flora presumed was this 'Aquaberry' thing, a white school shirt with a loose, hanging blue bow tie, frilly white ankle socks and a pair of light brown Mary Janes.

The girl nodded, a shy grin appearing on her face, allowing a pair of baby-pink braces to flash and reflect the daylight shining through the dorm window.

"Oh my gosh it's so cute! Finally another rich girl for me to hang with," Pinky stated, beaming at the girl who still stood fixated in the doorway. "You have to come see my Aquaberry collection sometime it's to die f-"

"Please say you're normal." Flora pleaded to the girl, drowning out the noise of Pinky describing in great detail the Aquaberry products she had and how much her daddy had paid for each item. "My social status has already faced enough abuse today, I don't know how much more I can take!" She grasped onto the newcomers shoulders, almost shaking her in the process. Thankfully, the girl merely giggled.

"I take it you're my new roommate then? I'm Rosalie," She had a soft, girlish voice, with a barely audible lisp from the braces on her teeth.

"Okay that's too long, I'm gonna just call you Rose. I'm Flora, and I swear to God if one more person calls me poor I'm gonna have to resort to finding a sugar daddy," Flora cast an over-dramatic pained look towards Pinky, who was still apparently waffling on about Aquaberry and how it was the new big thing this year.

"Ooh actually I have a cousin who might be up for that, he's rich...and _single_ ," Rose stated, appearing to look less and less like a frightened bunny as she realised her roommate seemed just as hopelessly lost in this hellhole as she did. It calmed her to know she wasn't the only newcomer, and that this Flora girl was in the exact same boat as herself.

The two were suddenly bombarded again by an overly-cheerful Pinky, who had apparently had another bright revelation, "You two just have to join the cheer squad! There's only three of us at the minute! Ooh and-"

"Y-yeah, cheerleading isn't really my thing," Rose shook her head looking extremely uncertain, "The only kind of dance I can do is dad-dancing and somehow I doubt that'll get me on the squad," She began to play with the hem of her skirt to avoid the scrutinising gazes of the two girls in front of her. Pinky raised an eyebrow judgingly.

"Show us," Flora stated crossing her arms, ignoring the spluttering protests of the shy girl stood in front of her.

"W-what? N-no you guys don't need to see this..." Rose trailed off at the persistent glares coming from her two acquaintances. There was no way she would willingly make a fool out of herself this early on, although something told her that these girls would not give up until she gave them some sort of demonstration. She let out a defeated sigh, before mumbling out a reluctant sounding "Fine...". She shuffled awkwardly, feeling incredibly flustered at the request. Rose quickly bowed her head slightly, bringing the pit of her elbow to her face, and she extended her other arm in the same direction, "Dab."

Silence.

That was what her dance move was met with. Complete and utter silence.

Pinky was the first to react, shooting an awkward look at Flora, who merely stood staring at the mortified girl in front of her, one eye narrowed and her mouth hanging open as she stared at Rose in pure confusion.

"D...Did you just dab?" Flora asked, blinking as Rose nodded and let out an awkward giggle. Flora blinked, looking at Pinky for some sort of reassurance, though she found none, "Y-yeah...maybe cheerleading really isn't your thing...I'm totally up for it though," She stated, quickly deciding to steal the attention away from Rose in order to avoid anymore awkwardness for the poor girl. She had warned them, after all, of her lack of dancing skills.

"Cool! I'll let Mandy know when I see her," Pinky replied, looking rather relieved at the change of subject. She turned her attention to Rose, who still had a light blush covering her cheeks, "As for you, how about I show you around Harrington House? I'm sure it's something someone of _your_ standing would appreciate!" Rose merely nodded in reply, allowing the preppie girl to basically drag her from the room, although not before shouting a quick 'See you later!' to Flora, who stood rooted on the spot. _'Do Bullworth have some kind of rich-kid club?_ ' the black haired girl asked herself internally. She didn't have much time to dwell on this thought, because almost as soon as the two preppie girls had left the room did someone else enter.

"H-hello," A skinny, wispy looking girl stood just in the door way, her mouth adorned by rather large and painful looking cold sores. "A-are you Flora? Mrs Peabody's asked me to show you to your classes...I'm Beatrice" She looked rather scared, as though she expected Flora to laugh at her or something of the sort, and judging by the behaviour Flora had witnessed from some of the male students on her journey to the principal's office, she wasn't very surprised.

Bullworth most definitely did not seem like your average school.

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Flora to get Beatrice to loosen up and relax around her, and throughout the whole of English, Beatrice had been a great guide, providing plentiful information on the various cliques of the school , who lead which clique, which students were approachable and friendly, and which students were likely to punch you in the face. All of this chattering had somehow gone unnoticed by the friendly but slightly intoxicated English teacher, who had been taking a great number of swigs from his 'tea' throughout the duration of the lesson.

"Y'know, Bea, I'm starting to suspect that he's not drinking tea at all," Flora stated sarcastically, which apparently went unnoticed by Beatrice who's eyes widened as she began to speak in a dramatically hushed tone.

"You're right it's not! I heard he's actually an alcoholic. Mr Hattrick's been trying to get him fired for ages," Beatrice whispered, looking rather scandalised. Flora pretended to act shocked by this news, not having the heart to tell Beatrice that she was being sarcastic and that the strong smell of vodka in the classroom had been a dead giveaway of Mr Galloway's unhealthy habit. "Speaking of drinks, how would you like to come hang with me and some friends at DW? It's nice to get away from the school and the prefects every now and then," Beatrice stated, looking rather hopeful. Flora blinked in surprise. She was pretty sure Beatrice, the girl whom she'd perceived as a goody-two-shoes had just invited her for an alcohol-drinking session at some super-secret sounding location. Not that she was about to decline the invitation of course, Flora was never one to turn down a few rounds of alcohol, and it also sounded like a perfect opportunity to make a bunch of new friends. In a place such as Bullworth, it was obvious that friends were a must.

"Sure, I could do with a drink!"

* * *

Apparently, when Beatrice had made the offer of supplying Flora with a few drinks at 'DW', she had actually meant soda, not alcohol. Not only that, it turned out that DW actually stood for Dragon Wings, which was a shabby comic book store located within Bullworth town, and was the main hangout for all the local nerds. It was within the stores damp and grungy basement where Flora found herself, sat at a round table occupied by a rather extravagant role-playing board game, and equally extravagant nerds, dressed in strange costumes. Somehow, she had been convinced into wearing a shimmery green cape and matching wizard's hat, which is apparently what her character, Faragorn the Fabulous would have worn. Too polite to leave so soon, she found herself agreeing to play this 'Grottos and Gremlins' game with these poor nerdy souls, listening to Algie speak in a high-squeaky voice as he took on the role of the seductive Elven princess.

It wasn't until a few hours later that she'd finally had enough, after being sneezed on numerous times by an allergy-ridden Bucky, who apparently didn't know how to cover his mouth when doing so. Wiping debris of mucus from her cheek for what felt like the billionth time, Flora finally decided that enough was enough, and bid the nerds goodnight, granting them false promises of coming back soon to continue the role of Faragorn the Fabulous since she'd apparently did such a splendid job of it.

"Fuck," Flora muttered as she finally stepped outside, realising how late it actually was. The autumn sky was now a dark grey, and the sun's rays finally began to succumb to the oncoming darkness and clusters of thick, gloomy clouds. A bitter breeze ran through the air, and Flora immediately regretted not bringing a jacket with her. She vowed never again to allow Beatrice to take her some place to 'hang'. Although the nerds were sweet in their own way, Grottos and Gremlins was definitely not her thing, nor was sitting in a damp, dark room that smelled slightly of urine, though she suspected that was mainly due to poor Algie.

As the sharp wind increased, Flora cursed as her skirt flew up slightly, instantly holding it down in order to preserve some of her dignity, which was already feeling pretty battered from being forced into a shimmery wizards outfit. The sounds of wolf-whistles rang through the air as she glanced over her shoulder, noticing two rough-looking young boys around her own age, standing in a nearby alley, eyeing her eagerly. She merely rolled her eyes muttering a sarcastic, "So mature," to herself as she hurried down the street, well aware that the two boys had now began to follow a few yards behind her. Maybe she should've just stuck around with the nerds until Beatrice was ready to leave? Flora wondered if she should maybe head back into the store and wait for the nerd girl, however, considering these two men appeared to be following her, she realised attempting to turn back would be stupid. She wanted to keep as much distance between herself and these boys as possible.

At this thought, she began to quicken her pace. If she could just get to the bridge she could probably make a run for it, after all, the school wasn't far from her current location. It would only take her around ten minutes to get back.

Unfortunately, Flora's plans to make it back to the school as quickly as possible were foiled as she rounded the corner, immediately colliding into someone's chest. She would have fallen too, if it weren't for this unknown person grabbing her arm in an attempt to keep her upright.

"Hey! Watch it!" Came a rather strong, masculine voice. Flora squeaked out a quick apology, glancing over her shoulder to see the two rough boys from before attempting to act nonchalant, by leaning against a nearby building, though their eyes still lingered in her direction. "What, these scumbags givin' you trouble?" The boy, who still had a steady grip on her arm, asked, clearly taking note of the scared expression on her face. Flora turned to him and nodded. Brown hair, brown eyes, a stud in one ear, and an amazingly sexy jaw-line. Though Flora couldn't focus on this for too long, as under his leather jacket, the boy was wearing a Bullworth uniform. Flora instantly felt relief wash over her. Though he looked like a rather intimidating boy, surely he wasn't about to let a fellow student be ravaged by these rough-looking goons.

"I-I think they might be following me," Flora stated uneasily, as she turned to glance at the boys again, noting the apprehensive looks on their faces. Apparently the boy in front of her was someone to be feared judging by their nervous expressions. He nodded in reply to her statement, before letting go of her arm and taking a few steps towards the stalkers. They had now stopped trying to act casual and were standing upright and tensed.

"You washed out rejects had better get outta' here before I kick your ass! Go on! Scram!" Flora's saviour barked, the hint of a threat laced behind his heated tone. For a moment, Flora believed that he'd made the situation worse. How on earth was he going to take on these two guys if they decided to take up his challenge of a fight? He was outnumbered, and Flora was definitely no fighter. Maybe she could run for help?

To her upmost surprise and relief, thankfully the act of searching for help was not needed, as the sketchy teenagers reluctantly began to saunter off, throwing glares of antipathy over their shoulders at Flora and the unknown boy, no doubt muttering out curses and insults in their retreat.

"Oh, thank fuck for that," Flora finally felt her anxiety ebbing away. She relaxed her tense stance, slumping her shoulders and resting a hand over her heart, feeling the pace of her heart beat lessen slightly. For a moment she thought she was going to be on the receiving end of a beating, or maybe something worse. She was never going to leave the school on her own again.

"You alright, kid?" The boy asked, turning back to Flora, looking slightly concerned. She nodded in reply, her eyes still closed as she attempted to further steady her breathing and heart rate. "What you doin' hangin' round here on your own anyways?" He took a few steps closer.

"I was on my way back to the school. I got stuck playing Grottos and Gremlins with them nerds, I only just escaped and now _this_ ," She shook her head in disbelief. If her first day at Bullworth was anything to go by she could tell that this school and town were anything but quiet and uneventful. "Seriously, if a nerd ever offers you a drink, _run,_ " The boy merely let out a low chuckle in reply.

"What's your name, anyways? How come I ain't seen you 'round before?"

"Probably because it's my first day here. I'm Flora," Flora replied. The boy nodded, pausing for a second as he studied her.

"How 'bout I walk you back. Don't want those scumbags turnin' up again. I'm Johnny by the way, Johnny Vincent," He took a pack of cigarettes out of his back pocket, shuffling one out of the packaging before placing it between his lips and pulling a lighter out. He lit the cig, before turning his attention back to Flora. "You want one?" He offered. Flora quickly shook her head. She didn't smoke. Never had, never would. Not that she was about to shame this boy for his habits, of course.

"C'mon then, let's get you back," He continued, beginning to head towards the bridge. Flora fell into step beside the tall boy, sneakily taking note of how handsome he actually was. "So, how you findin' it here?" He asked, which Flora was thankful for. The last thing she wanted was to have an awkward silence lingering between the two.

"Shit," She answered honestly, "I've spent the majority of the day wearing a stupid wizard's outfit and being referred to as Faragorn the Fabulous," Again Johnny chuckled lowly, taking a quick drag on his cig.

"How'd a girl like you get stuck with a bunch of nerds anyways?"

"Beatrice offered me some to hang and get drinks. I thought she meant actual drinks but instead she just gave me some soda," Flora explained, as the bridge came into view. Again she had to clutch the hem of her skirt to refrain it from blowing up in the autumn gale.

"Well, if it's alcohol you're after, you ain't gonna get any from those guys. You should come on down to the Tenements sometime, my boys could set you up," Johnny stated. Flora glanced at him from the corner of her eye, suddenly realising who he was. Beatrice had informed her of all the cliques and their leaders, and although she had forgotten the exact names Beatrice had mentioned, she was willing to bet that this guy was actually the leader of the 'Greasers'. It made sense.

"I'll keep that in mind. Something tells me I'll be needing to drink my feelings away thanks to this place," Flora replied, her eyes locked firmly on the ground in front of her now. They had finally begun to cross the bridge.

"C'mon, it ain't that bad. You'll get used to the place eventually," Johnny took another drag on his cigarette.

"So have you lived here your entire life or...?" Flora inquired, finding herself feeling oddly curious about the handsome boy beside her. There was just something about him that immediately piqued her interest. She didn't know what it was, but Flora found herself intrigued by the Greaser king.

"Yeah, I think the majority of the students come from Bullworth, there ain't many newbie's like you," Johnny answered, shoving his hands into his pockets. He glanced down at Flora, a small, friendly smile on his face. "It's kinda nice to have a fresh face 'round here," At this, Flora couldn't help but blush lightly. The words, though they meant nothing, had a strange effect on her, and as the school gates finally came into view she found herself feeling extremely disappointed that her time spent talking to the Greaser was coming to an end.

Johnny stopped a little way from the gates, turning to face the raven-haired girl. "I trust you can find your way to your dorm from here, huh?" He asked, as his mouth stretched into a cheeky grin. Flora nodded, smiling up at him.

"Thank you for walking me back," She felt strangely shy at this point, and shuffled her feet about awkwardly, unable to look him in the eyes.

"No worries. Just try and stay out of trouble from now on," Again he grinned, before taking the cigarette out of his mouth and throwing it to the ground, smothering the cylindrical roll with the bottom of his shoe. "I'll see you around, kid," He began to turn around, much to Flora's confusion. It was about an hour until curfew, surely he should be heading to his dorm now?

"B-but it's almost curfew? Shouldn't you be-"

"Nah, I don't stay in the dorms much. Me and my boys have a place sorted out in New Coventry," Johnny explained, shoving his hands back in his pockets as the wind began to pick up. "Later," And with that he was off, sauntering back in the direction he and Flora had just came from.

Flora stared after his retreating figure, unable to quench the curiosity she held for the boy. She'd never met anyone quite like him, and she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was that intrigued her so much. Sure, he was handsome, but there were plenty of good-looking guys around, none of whom had interested Flora to this level.

Casting one last glance at the Greaser King, Flora decided that it was finally time to head for the dorm, with thoughts of a hot shower and warm, cosy bed-sheets weaving their way into her mind, as the bitter wind continued to rage on, the cold air nipping at her skin.

* * *

Rosalie had never felt more out of place. After spending the day being introduced to the various rich kids of Harrington House, and receiving a number of backhanded compliments from said rich kids, she felt rather drained and exhausted. However, the unfamiliarity of her new dorm room prevented her from being able to sleep off her social exhaustion. It was most definitely past curfew by now, and the only noises that her ears could detect were the soft snores of her roommate, Flora, the not-so soft snores of Eunice Pound who occupied one of the rooms located on the floor below, and the excruciatingly aggravating sound of someone throwing eggs at the front of the dorm. Rose could only hope that the culprit would be caught by a prefect soon, as with each ' _splat_ ' she could feel her irritation increasing.

She rolled over onto her side, her mind returning to the various conversations and situations she'd been subjected to throughout the day. So far, the only friends she had made were Pinky and Flora. Though the Preppies Pinky had introduced her to at Harrington House had been accommodating, it was quite clear they only cared about one thing. Money. Tad and Justin had practically interrogated Rose on her family background, social status and wealth, whereas Gord had appeared extremely sceptical in regards to Rose's Aquaberry clothing, near enough demanding to know when she'd bought her Aquaberry products, before bragging about how impressive his own collection of clothes was in comparison. She hoped that she wasn't going to be trapped within the Preppie clique for her entire stay at Bullworth, it was tiring. The Preps seemed incredibly narrow-minded and almost obsessed with being better than everyone else. Truth be told, Rose wasn't quite sure she wanted to be friends with them. Pinky appeared to be the only relatively nice one out of the bunch, though even she had a tendency to look down her nose at people. Rose vowed to herself that tomorrow would be a fresh start, and that she would try her hardest to make friends with more 'normal' people. People who wouldn't base their friendship on her daddy's pay check.

Rose rolled over onto her back, closing her eyes tightly as she attempted to banish all the thoughts that currently inhabited her brain. She knew that if she didn't succumb to sleep soon that she would indeed suffer tomorrow. She found that without a strong eight hours of sleep she could barely function. However, the miscreant outside was still throwing eggs at the exterior of the dorm, and Rose couldn't help but wonder how many eggs one person could carry. Surely they should have run out by now? She sighed in exasperation as she dragged herself out of the snug sanctuary of bed-sheets, muttering to herself angrily as she padded over to the window. She had barely even moved the curtains an inch when a small object suddenly came flying at the window out of the darkness, white and yellow runny liquid splattering against the glass pane. She squeaked in fright at the sudden occurrence, quickly glancing over to her roommate to ensure that her sudden outburst hadn't woke the girl up. Flora merely snorted in her sleep, before falling silent.

"That is it!" Rose hissed to herself, glaring out the window one last time. If the prefects weren't going to sort this out, then clearly she was going to have to deal with the scoundrel herself. She didn't have time to rationalise or think this through clearly, as before she knew it her feet were carrying her down the dorm halls and towards the stairs. She didn't care who it was throwing eggs at the dorm or why they were doing it, she just wanted some peace and quiet. It was hard enough trying to sleep with millions of thoughts zooming round her mind, but the constant smashing of eggs against the dorm made the feat near enough impossible. Rose had had enough. She stormed through the dorms main entrance, instantly regretting not putting on a pair of shoes as her feet made contact with the ice cold concrete.

"Do you _mind_!?" She yelled, not caring who heard, "Some of us are trying to sl-"

' _ **SPLAT'**_

Rose was suddenly extremely aware of a cold, watery substance dripping from her hair, slowly oozing its way down her forehead. She was also conscious of the fact that she had somehow fallen to the ground. The top of her head felt soaked, and there was a dull throbbing emitting from the top of her skull. Slowly, she brought a hand up, scooping a small amount of the gooey fluid onto the tip of her finger. _Eggs._

As she began to fully comprehend the situation, her eyes began to fill up with tears. Not only was her hair thick of egg, but she was pretty sure a lump was actually forming on her skull from where the egg had made contact. Who knew being egged could be so painful? Carefully, the brunette sat up, choking back a sob as small pieces of egg-shell debris fell from her head.

"Fuck! N-no, no! Don't cry, I'm sorry!" She heard a nearby male voice say, followed by the sound of someone hurrying over. Their words of course fell upon deaf ears, as Rose began to sob harder, covering the lower half of face in an attempt to muffle the sound. "Ssh! C'mon, man, stop being such a wimp! You tryna' get me busted or something?" The voice asked again.

Through her tears, Rose could make out a dark brown hair styled into a pompadour, and a brown leather jacket, the rest was just a blur. A messy, tearful blur. His lack of sympathy, whoever this boy was, was of course no help. If anything it made her cry even harder, as the humiliation of the situation finally set in.

"What's the matter with you, man? I already said sorr-"

" _You!_ What do you think you're doing!?"

Rose glanced up quickly as a second voice joined the fray. She could just about see a prefect standing in the archway of the Girls dorm, a flashlight in one hand. Like all prefects, he had an expression on his face that suggested a bad smell was present. Or maybe it was just the eggs? The Greaser boy in front of her cursed. Casting one last glance at Rose he bolted, the prefect hot on his heels, leaving Rose to dwell in her newfound humiliation and misery.


	2. Save Room for Jesus

Sledgehammer

Chapter 2 – Save Room for Jesus

* * *

It had taken Rose approximately four showers before the egg scent and debris had finally been fully banished from her person, and it wasn't until the early hours of the morning did she finally succumb to sleep. This meant that, naturally, she was a complete and utter wreck the following morning. It had taken her a good twenty minutes to drag herself out of bed, leaving her barely any time to get ready. She felt like a mess, and she wished for nothing more than to wrap herself up in a blanket-burrito and stay in bed all day. Unfortunately, Mrs Peabody nor Flora would allow her to do so.

"What do you think the teachers would say if I went up to them and said 'Oh, sorry, Rose is too traumatised to come to class today, she got egged last night,' huh?" Flora demanded as she pulled Rose's honey-brown hair into a high ponytail in an attempt to control the static-flyaway hairs that came as a result of multiple showers in one night. "Besides, I don't know why you're so bothered. It's only a bit of egg, I'm sure you eat eggs all the time," Flora moved directly in front of Rose and began to dab a small amount of concealer under the smaller girl's eyes in an attempt to hide her now rather prominent dark circles. Rose merely spluttered in protest at Flora's statement.

"There is a huge difference between eating _cooked_ eggs and having _raw_ ones cracked on your head!" Rose declared, feeling positively outraged, " _And_ it hurt! I could have concussion for all you know," Flora was now proceeding to shove the Prep girls feet into her shoes, fully intending to walk her to class too just to ensure that she wouldn't double back and hide in the dormitory instead of attending English.

"Who did it, anyways?"

"I don't know," Rose replied, staring down at Flora who had now finished with the shoes and now lay flat on her back, clearly feeling drained from dressing not only herself but Rose too. She felt as though she had been roomed with a toddler. "I was crying too much to see his face. He had a leather jacket on, though. And I'd probably recognise his voice again," That nasally voice that had been lined with panic. Yes, she'd definitely be keeping an ear out for that voice while out and about on campus, not that she'd do anything, of course, if she did find the culprit. Rose was all talk. Although stubborn, she hated confrontation, and was rather wimpy at the best of times.

"So it was a Greaser, then?" Flora asked, her interest suddenly piqued. She'd found herself curious about them since her walk home from Dragon Wings Comics last night, or more specifically, their leader. Rose paused, noticing the display of curiosity.

"I suppose...why? What are you so interested for?" Rose asked, a small, devious smile appearing on her face. "Don't tell me you've got a crush on someone already?" Flora's eyes widened, and she quickly shook her head, immediately jumping to her feet.

"O-of course not!" Her cheeks were a dusty pink all of a sudden, as she quickly fumbled around in a mad dash to gather her school books for the day, "Well, I-I'd best be off for class! Later!" And with that she dashed out of the room, so flustered that she forgot all about her earlier vow to walk Rose to class. Rose merely sighed, deciding she would question her roommate later, before she too gathered her books, although at a much slower pace. She had English first, and she'd decided that she had better attend if she didn't want Flora on her case later. Not only that, Mrs Peabody had now began her morning rounds to ensure nobody attempted to truant, and she didn't exactly want to gain a detention from the severe woman for attempting to bunk off. With that in mind, Rose took one last glance at herself in the mirror, grateful for Flora's help in getting ready, before finally departing.

* * *

She'd been sat at her desk for a mere five minutes and already Rose was on the verge of grabbing Mr. Galloway's 'tea' and downing the entire contents. She strongly regretted not hiding under her bed until Mrs. Peabody had finished her morning rounds, before spending the entire day sleeping her exhaustion away. Instead, she was sat right at the back of the classroom, her chin propped up on the palm of her hand and her mouth wide open as she sat in a daze. As a requirement of the school curriculum, her English class were studying the novel _Wuthering Heights_ , and as a result Mr. Galloway had picked a few unenthusiastic students to take turns reading the first few chapters, all of who were relaying the words in a bored, monotone timbre. Mr. Galloway was far too intoxicated to notice the lack of enthusiasm, and instead sat slumped at his desk. In fact, Rose was beginning to suspect he'd actually fallen asleep.

"You trying to catch flies there?"

Rose snapped out of her stupor, blinking in surprise as she realised the occupant of the desk next to hers was talking to her. He had dark brown hair styled into a low fade, with the longer locks on top tousled carefully to give it a slightly messy yet still sophisticated finish, deep brown eyes, and a rather angular face. He was very handsome, and wore a friendly smile on his face. Like most students he wore a white school shirt, with a blue Bullworth vest over the top, and a pair of light brown school slacks which looked rather tight Rose noticed. She merely gave the boy a meek smile, not really sure on how to reply to his jest.

"You're new here, right?" He probed further, keeping his voice hushed so as not to disturb the class. Rose nodded in reply. "Cool. I'm Kaden, by the way." Rose studied the boy, deciding that this might be the perfect opportunity to make a friend who wasn't a rich, Aquaberry-obsessed snob.

"I'm Rosalie," She whispered in reply, quickly glancing at Mr. Galloway to ensure he wouldn't notice their chattering. He still sat slumped at his desk, now snoring softly, and his 'tea' soaking the various paperwork on his desk as it oozed from the overturned cup. "Are his lessons always like this?" She glanced at the clock, noting they had a mere twenty minutes left. Kaden shook his head.

"Not really. I mean he's always drunk, but not usually this bad. Hattrick's been giving him a rough time though, I heard. He's only gonna get worse with that fat bastard around," Kaden murmured, glancing darkly at the English teacher. "It's a shame, he was the only decent teacher we had around here," At this statement Rose's eyes widened.

"The _only_ decent one? B-but how are we supposed to learn anything!?" Her voice raised slightly, and upon receiving a few looks from her fellow classmates she blushed, keeping her head down until they had all turned their attention elsewhere. Thankfully Galloway was still asleep.

Kaden shrugged, a small grin on his face, "We're all fucked once we leave here. I mean the Preps are okay because their daddies can 'buy' their grades. No offence," He added hastily, noticing Rose's Aquaberry clothing. He was right, however, and Rose knew it. She knew that though he would disappointed with her bad grades, her father would most definitely bribe Rose a clear path up her eventual career ladder. Other students at Bullworth, however, wouldn't be so lucky.

The two fell silent, ceasing their chattering until finally, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, the bell sounded, signalling that it was now lunch. Mr. Galloway sat up in a startled frenzy at the sound, his eyes cross-eyed and bloodshot. "G-good work c-class...I'll sh...see you next lesson where we'll be studying...studying...uh...something," Rose merely raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Kaden who looked completely unbothered by this.

"Should we go get someone to help?" She asked nervously, noticing that Galloway had now fallen back into his slumber. It didn't feel right just leaving him at his desk. Kaden, however, shook his head before leading his way out of the classroom, Rose following reluctantly.

"If we get help Hattrick or Crabblesnitch might find out. He'll be worse off then," Kaden stated, shutting the classroom door firmly behind him, hiding the drunken figure of Galloway from the eyes of all the students passing by. "He'll be fine, Rose. He always is. C'mon, let's go get some food," Rose cast once more worried glance at the classroom door before following the boy. Now that he was standing she noticed that he was rather short in stature, although still taller than her, and quite well-built too, with a fairly ample derrière she sneakily noticed.

"You made many friends here?" He asked, as they headed towards the cafeteria doors.

"Not really. Pinky introduced me to some other Preppies but they're kinda hard work. I can't tell if they're being nice to me or if they're being sarcastic half the time," Rose replied, to which Kaden hummed in agreement, "What about you? Are you in a clique or anything?" The two descended the steps into the cafeteria and immediately sat at the table nearest to the door. Rose had learnt this rather quickly, but at Bullworth, it was always best to sit as near to an exit as possible in case a fight or prank war broke out.

"Nope, not many people here are willing to hang with the 'gay kid'," Kaden stated casually, picking an apple from the fruit basket next to them and inspecting it carefully. Upon deciding that it looked safe he took a quick bite from it, munching away noisily.

Rose paused at his statement, temporarily stunned. She hadn't expected that reply, however, what had surprised her more was how narrow-minded people could be, "B-but why?"

"Because kids at this school are dicks," Kaden replied, shrugging as though it were no big deal. Rose merely stared around the room for a few seconds, affronted at how prejudiced people could be. It was clear, however, on the nonchalant way Kaden discussed his fellow student's attitude that it wasn't a subjected he particularly cared to elaborate on, and Rose decided to drop it, and change the subject slightly.

"C-can I be honest?" She asked, grinning guiltily at the boy sat in front of her. He nodded, his grin matching hers as he cocked an eyebrow. "I was actually totally checking you out before as well thinking I'd actually found a nice guy in this hellhole," Rose blushed red and giggled, only slightly embarrassed at how she'd been completely barking up the wrong tree. Thankfully, Kaden laughed along with her.

"I don't blame you, honey. I'm pretty cute, aren't I?" He smiled cheekily, "I'd totally date me," He took another bite from his apple, his eyes warm and friendly as he studied the laughing girl in front of him.

"Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of 'That booty!', I'm not gonna lie," Rose snorted as Kaden nearly choked on his apple at this statement, which only made the two laugh harder.

"Squats, girl, that's all I'm gonna say," He stated, flicking his hand over his shoulder as though he was flipping imaginary long hair. It was at that point in which the two were joined by three other people, none of who Rose recognised. Kaden, however, appeared to be on good terms with the lot, which surprised Rose considering his earlier statement.

"Hey guys," Kaden greeted, passing the fruit basket down the table for them to choose from. A small boy with a pink shirt and brown hair now occupied the seat next to Rose, whilst a rough looking boy in a blue Bullworth vest and another with a scar over his right-eye sat in the two seats next to Kaden. Rose, always on the shy side, found herself feeling rather nervous and intimidated by the sudden presence of these newcomers. "This is Rose, by the way, and these guys are Jimmy, Gary and Petey," Kaden indicated to each boy as he said their names. None of them really spoke to Rose other than Pete, who mumbled a shy 'hello'

"Don't they have anything better than this shit?" Jimmy demanded, glancing over at food counter, in which Edna was now serving out what looked to be some sort of gruel that had a great resemblance to vomit. The sight seemed to turn him off food completely, and he turned away, "Eh, never mind. I'd rather not die from food poisoning right now,"

"That's probably a smart idea, Jimmy-boy. I heard she used one of Ms. Philips cats in last week's stew," The boy called Gary stated, grinning darkly at the boy next to him. Rose squeaked in shock and disgust, glancing up at the cook in an appalled manner, her appetite now completely gone. Gary turned to look at her, his grin growing at the traumatised look on her face. "What? Like you've never eaten cat before? You'll have to get used to it if you don't want to starve to death in this dump, princess," Rose glanced at Gary, her eyes widening even more. How was she meant to survive? The food was clearly inedible and by the looks of the gruel some students were eating, she wouldn't be surprised if Gary was actually right.

"That's sick! What are we meant to eat?" She looked at Kaden opposite her, who passed her a banana from the basket.

"Fruit," Kaden stated, noticing that this response did nothing in appeasing the Prep girl, "Ignore him, honey, I'm sure there are no cats in the food," He finished his apple, and instead moved onto munching his way through a ripe, juicy pear. Rose regained her composure slightly at his reassurance, and began to peel the banana he'd handed her, deciding that she'd have to eat _something_.

"Are you sure about that, femme-boy? How about taste-testing for us?" Gary challenged, his grin now incredibly mocking. Rose wasn't quite sure she liked this boy very much, "The foods bad enough, but wait until you find out what she does with the fruit," At this, Rose choked on the banana she'd been about to take a bite of, and she immediately threw it onto the table, looking at the fruit as though it had just contaminated her. Kaden merely rolled his eyes in disgust at the scarred boy, clearly quite used to his antics.

"Not one for deep-throating, I see," Gary mocked further, making Rose flush in humiliation and anger. How could one boy be so rude? Never had she disliked someone this quickly. It seemed that everything that came out of this boy's mouth was said to ridicule someone.

"You're such a jerk, Gary," Pete stated, clearly feeling sympathy for the slighted girl beside him. This seemed to humour Gary even further, however, and his eyes lit up maliciously. His sly grin widened even further, and Rose knew that he was just full of spiteful comebacks.

"Did I hurt your girlfriends feelings, femme-boy? Oh, I'm _so_ sorry," His voice dripped with sarcasm, and Rose wondered how on earth these people were his friends when all he seemed to do was mock them incessantly. He seemed incapable of speaking in a tone that wasn't laced with sarcasm.

"C'mon Gary, lay off. You're not funny," Jimmy stepped in, glancing at the two sitting opposite and noticing the rather unhappy looks on their faces.

"Don't tell me you're going soft on me too," Gary glanced at the table, noticing that the three of them all looked rather unimpressed at his antics. Kaden was too busy searching his way through the fruit basket to care. "C'mon I'm just joking. Lighten up!" These words seemed to appease Jimmy and Pete. Rose, however, still felt incredibly wary of the boy, and eyed him sceptically. She hoped she wouldn't be subjected to sitting next to him any more after today.

The rest of the lunch hour passed by rather quickly, and Rose felt herself warming up to both Petey and Jimmy. Gary, however, though he didn't make any more jokes at her expense, teased poor Pete throughout the duration of lunch. The teasing was endless, and Rose wondered why the small boy put up with such merciless taunting. It wasn't until Kaden signalled that it was time to leave that she'd realised their break was over. The two had near enough the exact same schedule thankfully, and Rose felt relieved to know that there would now be at least one friendly face in the majority of her classes.

"Don't worry," Kaden stated, as they neared the Art classroom, "Ms. Philips is nice, you'll like her," Rose nodded, following the boy into the classroom, where upon entering Ms. Philips immediately pulled her aside. Rose feared that she was going to make her stand at the front of the class and introduce herself, but thankfully the beautiful art teacher did no such thing. Instead, she simply assigned her a seat at a large desk at the back of the classroom, which currently sat unoccupied. She wondered who her seatmate would be, or even if she had one for that matter considering it looked as though almost all the students were now here. Rose looked over at Kaden for reassurance, only to find he was sat right at the front with his back turned to her. She hated seating plans.

Just as Ms. Philips was about to start, one more student finally sauntered into the room, clad in a brown leather jacket with dark hair. Rose froze immediately, and her eyes narrowed. That leather jacket looked familiar. In fact, it seemed as though the owner recognised Rose too, as he froze suddenly, his eyes widening. He looked slightly panicked. It was him! It had to be him!

"Egg boy," Rose growled under her breath, her eyes narrowing as he made his way over to her table.

"Ah, Larry. Glad you could finally join us. Now that we're all here, we can make a start." Ms. Philips called, as the class fell silent. Egg boy, or Larry, had now taken a seat next to Rose, and judging by his tense posture he knew that Rose had recognised him. This was going to be one uncomfortable lesson. "Today's not going to be a practical lesson, unfortunately. Instead, I'm going to hand out these textbooks based on some of the most famous artists known. Our final project for this term will be to create a painting, or even some sort of artefact, taking influence from famous classical artists. I want you to research these artists and choose which one will be your muse for this project. All research and planning done within these lessons will contribute to your final portfolio, so use this time wisely. You may begin," Ms. Philips began to hand out the textbooks, and whilst the other students began to chatter amongst themselves, Rose and her new seatmate sat in silence. Egg boy, obviously feeling rather uncomfortable with the tense silence, attempted to clear his throat awkwardly, and before she knew it, Rose had snapped.

"So, egg any more innocent people today?" She asked in a clipped voice, her face like stone as she turned to face him. There was no trace of the usual, friendly girl behind the doe-like brown eyes. The lack of sleep, the lack of food, and the incessant teasing from Gary Smith had finally whittled her down. She was at boiling point. Apparently, however, Larry had been expecting this, and merely let out a sigh of exasperation, which did nothing to appease Rose.

"Look, I said I was sorry, man! Gimme a break! I had to hide in a bin for twenty minutes before that jerk gave up lookin' for me," Egg boy stated, clearly feeling as though he'd been given the short straw of the whole situation.

"Well maybe next time you'll think twice before chucking eggs at people!" Rose hissed, flashing a fake smile up at Ms. Philips as she supplied the two with textbooks. Rose immediately grabbed the less battered looking book, opening it up. Just as suspected, each page was littered with graffiti, and one page had a rather large stain on that it that looked suspiciously like vomit. Larry's was even worse.

"It was only a bit of egg, man!" Larry retorted, opening his book up on a random page which contained a large portrait of a man, in which some student had graffitied a speech bubble out of his mouth containing the words 'send nudes'. "Besides, it wasn't nothin' personal. I wasn't aimin' for you," He doodled a penis onto the portraits forehead.

"It might've just been a 'bit of egg' to you, but it meant four showers and just two hours of sleep for me!" Rose snapped, glancing up to see a few students looking over at the pair curiously, including Kaden. "I could report you to Crabblesnitch, y'know," She continued, lowering her voice so as not to attract any more attention. At this Larry sat up straight, staring at the girl beside him with wide eyes. Rose felt a slight spark of satisfaction run through her at the look of panic in his brown eyes.

"You wouldn't," He stated, sounding rather uncertain. Rose merely raised an eyebrow, smiling smugly now that she had the upper hand.

"I might," She replied, turning to skim through the pages of her textbook, pausing to write a few ideas down in her notebook. She was lying, of course. She wasn't the type to tattle, nor was she the type for any sort of confrontation which is why she found herself rather surprised at her current behaviour. Then again, everyone had their limits, and she'd definitely reached hers today. Without a good eight hours of sleep she was like a time-bomb just waiting to be set off. It was a rare occurrence, usually. Larry had now fallen silent, and had settled upon drawing various graffiti all throughout the already vandalised textbook. "Why were you egging the dorm, anyways?" Rose asked, feeling slightly more civilised now that she'd gotten most of her anger out.

"Why'd you wanna know? So you can snitch on me to Crabblesnitch?" The boy snapped, continuing to doodle on the books pages. Rose merely sighed and turned back to her own work.

"I wouldn't really snitch, you know. I just don't like having eggs thrown at me," She tried to reason, suddenly feeling bad for the Greaser. Clearly, the damage had already been done, however, as he merely scoffed, refusing to look at her.

"Whatever, man. You trust-fund fairies are all the same," He retorted, turning so his back was now facing the Preppie girl. Rose rolled her eyes, glancing around the class, her eyes falling upon Kaden who gave her a quizzical look. His eyes darted between Rose and the huffed Greaser. Rose just shook her head, before turning her gaze to her work. The two worked in silence for the rest of the lesson, and when the bell finally rang Larry practically jumped to his feet, rushing out the classroom as quickly as possible. Maybe Rose would just skip art lessons from now on to avoid him.

"What did you do to Peanut?" Kaden asked as soon as she stepped foot out of the classroom. He'd been waiting for her at the door. Rose looked at the boy with a confused expression.

"Peanut? Who's Peanut?"

"Larry," Kaden sighed impatiently, rolling his eyes, "Everyone calls him Peanut, though. Don't ask why," Rose nodded, still feeling confused but she decided to drop it and instead tell Kaden what he wanted to hear.

"He accidentally egged me last night and I confronted him for it," Rose sighed, as the two began to head down the stairs into the entrance hall, "It didn't go well," Kaden merely laughed.

"You're not kidding! He looked like a stroppy child," He stated, before checking his watch, "Look, I'm gonna have to head off, I've got detention with that prick, Seth. I think he's gonna make me weed the Harrington House garden or something," The two stopped at the bottom of the stairs, moving to the side so other students could file past still.

"What did you do? It's like the first week of term?"

"I caught Gloria and Pedro making out near the library and I thought it would be funny to break them up and tell them to 'save room for Jesus' but...er...they didn't find it funny..." Kaden explained, grinning sheepishly as Rose snorted with laughter, "And they told on me," He shoved his hands in his pockets, thinking back to the memory fondly. He found it funny, even if the prefects didn't. He also found it incredibly unfair how he'd received a detention for such a menial thing.

"Whatever, go and enjoy your detention, Jesus Christ Reborn," Rose chuckled, waving goodbye to her friend as she headed for the front doors of the building. Kaden merely sighed, before turning to exit through the back door. He was sure this detention would be anything but enjoyable, but he knew better than to not turn up at all. No, it was best to get detentions over and done with, especially ones like this that actually required him to move. He would've much preferred to write lines, which seemed like a much better punishment t for such a basic prank such as the one he'd pulled. But no, instead he was being assigned as Harrington's House gardener for the hour. What a bore.

* * *

The detention turned out even worse than expected. Kaden had stood for ten minutes being lectured and abused by the punishment prefect, Seth, who seemed to take great pride in telling the boy how worthless he was, and how he wished that they could give out beatings instead of detention, which didn't faze Kaden in the slightest. All the prefects were rather cruel and harsh at Bullworth, and each handed out strings of verbal abuse on a day to day basis. After the lecture was over, and after Chester the Preppies Bull Terrier had bitten him rather painfully on the ankle, Kaden had been assigned with weeding and pruning the bushes that lined the Harrington House garden. It would've been fine and dandy if Seth hadn't of ran off after Hal who thought it would be hilarious to run up to Harrington House and throw a stink bomb through the door and into the interior. He ran off at full speed afterwards with Seth and a few angry Preppies hot on his heels. Kaden would've bunked off at that point, but knew the punishment prefect would return soon, and so he stayed on his hands and knees, his arms aching from all the physical labour.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here, hmm?" A posh, masculine voice sounded out from somewhere behind him. Kaden grimaced at the sound. Without the prefect here to watch over his detention it meant he was now an open target for the preps. He moved into a kneeling position, turning to glance over his shoulder.

"What do you want, Gord?" He asked, staring up at the brunette Preppie who stood directly behind him with a rather smug smirk on his face. Kaden had never spoken to this boy in his life, he'd made a habit of avoiding the Preps whenever possible. They didn't make for good company in his opinion.

"Oh, don't mind me pauper, I was just enjoying the... _pleasing_ display you were giving us," Gord stated slyly, his eyes flashing towards the other boys derrière which was clad in taut, tan school slacks. Kaden felt his face go blank at the boy's statement, the back of his neck starting to heat up. _Is this trust-fund brat hitting on me?_ "So, poor boy, what brings you here? Hoping Crabblesnitch will pay you if you clean up the gardens? Hmm...yes you look like you could do with some money. Although I must say you are pulling off that homeless-chic look rather well," Gord continued, his smirk widening even further as he noticed the irritated expression that had settled upon Kaden's face. Kaden clenched his fists angrily, but stayed on the ground. The last thing he wanted to do was lose his temper and earn himself another detention.

"What do you want?" He asked again through gritted teeth, glaring up at the Preppie boy, who seemed to be enjoying himself immensely. They were a horrible bunch, those trust-fund turds.

"Who? Me?" Gord asked, feigning innocence, although the mischievous look in his eyes gave his intentions away completely, "Nothing at all, I just fancied a small chat with the gardener is all. So, how's your first week going?" Kaden furrowed his eyes in confusion at the last question.

"F-first week? What?"

"Well I'm assuming you're new here, yes?" Gord asked, speaking slowly as though he thought Kaden to be incredibly unintelligent or something of the sort. Kaden merely snorted in disbelief at the Preppie, who cocked his head in confusion at the boy's sudden change in attitude.

"Are you serious?" Kaden asked, staring at the rich boy in bewilderment, "I've been going here for _years_ , Gord," He knew that the Preps were incredibly self-absorbed and didn't really bother with people outside their social circle, but this was a new low.

"How come I've never seen you before today then?" Gord asked, looking down at Kaden sceptically, as though he believed him to be lying. Kaden could feel the irritation beginning to creep back again.

"I'm Kaden? Kaden Murphy?" Kaden tried. Gord showed no signs of recognition however, causing Kaden to sigh in an exasperated manner, "...I was _literally_ in your Chemistry class last year? You set my textbook on fire." Again, nothing. Gord merely shook his head, raising an eyebrow at his fellow student, and Kaden couldn't help but gape in disbelief. These Preps were something else.

"Are you sure you aren't lying to me, paup-" Gord began to ask, but he was quickly interrupted by a new arrival.

"You! What do you think you are doing!? Get away from that lout, he's in detention!" Came Seth's voice, as the prefect finally made his way back into the grassy lot, his expression even more sour than usual. Kaden took this as a sign that Hal had somehow managed to escape. Gord cast a wary look at the prefect, before turning his gaze back to Kaden.

"I'll see you around then, poor boy," Gord called, before walking off with that annoying smirk on his face. Something in the Preps voice told Kaden that he meant what he said, and he had a feeling that he would be seeing a lot of the rich brat, whether he liked it or not. He sighed at the thought, returning to his previous position on his hands and knees as he continued his task of weeding. The uncomfortable feeling of someone watching him stayed present through the entire duration of the detention.

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 _ **Review! Review! Review! ;)**_


	3. Slingshots and Shop Class

_**Thank you for the reviews so far I really appreciate it! Hope you enjoy 3**_

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Sledgehammer

Chapter 3 – Slingshots and Shop Class

* * *

Flora cursed every single God she could think of as she exited the girl's dormitory. How she'd gotten stuck with such a useless subject, she'd never understand. Crabblesnitch had warned her on her first day that some of the classes she'd applied for, such as Photography and Home Economics, were full, but placing her in Shop class was completely and utterly ridiculous. She'd had to re-read her class schedule twice that morning just to make sure she wasn't seeing things. What on earth was she going to learn from this? Flora didn't care about bikes. She couldn't even ride one! The whole ordeal was just stupid. In fact, she would've bunked off if it weren't for Mrs Peabody hovering outside her room during her morning rounds. It was almost as though the older woman could sense Flora's temptation to truant.

Her disregard for the class only heightened upon entering the Auto Shop, where she soon came to realise that she was the only female who was actually enrolled on the course. The classroom was just full of Greasers, all of who were giving her rather curious and odd looks. Clearly they believed Flora to be in the wrong room or something of the sort, as even the Shop teacher was looking rather confused. Thankfully, there was one friendly face who apparently took sympathy on the hesitant raven-haired girl who hovered awkwardly by the classroom door, looking incredibly out of place.

"You lost or somethin'?" Came a rather familiar voice. Flora turned around to face the speaker, feeling a wave of relief wash over her as her eyes fell upon the Greaser king. His face wore a rather amused smirk, and it was quite clear that he believed Flora had taken a wrong turn on her way to a different class. She shook her head.

"No, this is where I'm meant to be," She replied, glancing round the room to see the other students had now returned to their work. Johnny raised an eyebrow.

"You sure? You don't really look like the type of girl who's interested in bikes," His tone and expression were filled with doubt and scepticism, as though he believed Flora to be playing some sort of joke. Flora glanced at the Shop teacher who appeared to be glancing down his register, checking to see if there was some sort of mistake.

"I'm not. I just got put here because the other classes are full," Flora explained, her eyes studying the room nervously. She felt completely lost. How on earth was she going to pass this class? Everyone here looked like they knew exactly what they were doing, and she found herself feeling rather intimidated.

"Flora Riley, yeah?" The Shop teacher, Neil, called from behind his desk. Flora turned and nodded, walking over to him. "You know anything about bikes?" He asked. Like Johnny he looked extremely doubtful, and as Flora shook her head, feeling rather stupid at this point, he sighed in an exasperated manner, clearly wondering what he was going to do with the girl.

"Right, I'm gonna pair you up with Johnny for today, kid. We'll get him to teach you the basics. I'll be honest with you, though, the chances of you passing this class are slim. Most the guys who take this class already know half of what they're doing," Neil stated, looking rather unimpressed with the situation. "I'll have a word with Crabblesnitch for you, kid, see if we can get you moved somewhere else, yeah?" Flora nodded immediately, feeling rather grateful for the teacher's suggestion. The thought of having to attend this class for a full year almost gave her a headache.

After being dismissed by Neil, Flora headed over to where Johnny was working, hovering next to him uncertainly. She didn't even know where to start.

"So I'm the one stuck babysittin' you, huh?" He asked, glancing up from the bike he was working on to study the girl next to him. By this point Flora was starting to feel rather meek. It wasn't her fault that she got stuck with this class, yet she felt as though they were all treating her like some sort of nuisance. As though she'd purposely applied for a class she had no interest in or basic knowledge of.

"I guess...sorry," She said in a rather quiet voice. She began to play with her fingers as she felt her cheeks heat up under the Greasers gaze. To her surprise, he let out a low chuckle, nudging her gently with his elbow.

"C'mon, I'm just kiddin'. I don't mind. You can be my apprentice," Johnny stated smiling down at his new helper. Flora nodded, feeling slightly reassured by how kind he was being. Most students would've been positively outraged at being paired with someone so dense, but not the Greaser king. "You can start by passin' me the extractor," He nodded in the direction of a bunch of tools, which had been laid out neatly. Flora stared at him as though he'd grown an extra head.

"The what now?"

"The chain rivot extractor," He elaborated, his smirk growing as Flora just stared up at the boy, her expression blank. "C'mon, don't tell me you don't know what that is. You ain't that clueless, right?" His mocking was all in good nature, Flora knew this, but she didn't want to push her luck with her lack of knowledge on bikes, in fear of annoying the Greaser. After all, he was trying to pass the class too.

Flora scoffed, "O-of course, I know what it is," She lied taking a step towards the tools, her hands hovering uncertainly over a random utensil. She glanced up at Johnny who was watching her closely, his brown eyes full of humour. He knew she was bluffing, she could tell. He shook his head, indicating that it was the wrong tool, as he tried his best not to laugh at the clueless girl. She moved her hand over the next tool, again looking at the Greaser to see if it was right.

"That's a wrench, kid," He stated, his smirk turning into a broad grin as Flora blushed, looking back down at the tools in a helpless manner.

"I-I knew that! I was just...testing you," She stuttered, knowing fine well that Johnny saw right through her bluff. Thankfully, he seemed to find it more humorous than bothersome. Finally taking pity on the girl, Johnny picked up the extractor himself, chuckling lowly as he set himself to work, doing his best to talk Flora through the various steps. It was all in vain of course, as everything he said went in one ear and out the other, leaving Flora more confused than she had been before.

"So, got stuck playin' with those nerds anymore?"Johnny asked, as he began to fiddle with the brake levers, not bothering to look up. "Who was it they made you dress up as last time?"

"Faragorn the Fabulous," Flora sighed at the memory, the humiliation of the situation kicking in. Johnny chuckled. "Nope, I've managed avoid them so far. Beatrice keeps walking past my room constantly though, I think she's trying to work up the nerve to ask me to play," She said, playing around with the screwdriver that currently occupied her hands. It was true. Every time she'd spotted any sign of those bright green Astronomy club sweater vests, she ducked or hid behind the nearest object, in fear of it belonging to a nerd. She never wanted to be subjected to a night of role-playing with those losers again.

"I'll let her know you were askin' after her then, see if I can convince her give you another invite," Johnny teased, smirking at the wide-eyed look Flora was giving him.

"You wouldn't."

"I would," Johnny countered, before holding out his hand, "Screwdriver," Flora passed him the tool, hyper aware of how his fingers brushed against hers. She felt her cheeks heat up once again, and hoped that the Greaser wouldn't notice the light blush now covering her cheeks.

"So...uh...you must know a lot about bikes, huh?" Flora asked, in an attempt to mask her sudden feeling of shyness after the brief contact. Internally, she scolded herself for being so stupid. Sure he was handsome, manly and rather sweet too, but a small brush of the fingers should not have been enough to make her feel so flustered. She was just thankful that the boy in front of her seemed too engaged with his bike to really notice her sudden embarrassed state.

"Yup. I'm the king around here when it comes to bikes," Johnny replied, seemingly forgetting about the bike for a second and instead turning to face the girl. His face wore a rather cocky expression, and it was clear that he was extremely proud of his talent with bikes. "Ask anyone. There ain't nobody who can beat Johnny Vincent,"

Flora flashed the boy a small smile, "You must be pretty good then,"

"'Course I am. What about you? Can you even ride one?" Johnny asked. His expression and tone made it clear that he was joking, however, as Flora shook her head, his face turned blank.

"Nope. I've never ridden a bike before,"

"You're toyin' with me, right?" He asked. Again Flora shook her head, causing Johnny to look at her as though she were some sort of alien. It made her giggle to see how perplexed the Greaser king looked. "Right, it's decided then," He stated, turning his attention back to his bike, and he once again set back to work.

"What's decided?"

"I'mma teach you how to ride a bike," Johnny told her, glancing up at the girl to see her reaction. Flora attempted to hide the large grin that was trying to worm its way onto her face. She didn't want to seem too pleased at the concept of spending quality time with him outside of lessons, though the thought made her feel as though a thousand butterflies were fluttering around in her stomach. "Can't have my apprentice not knowin' how to ride a bike," He flashed her a broad grin, his deep brown eyes warm and friendly as Flora bit her lip in an attempt to keep a straight face, merely nodding in reply.

The rest of the lesson passed by in a blur, and Flora found herself feeling extremely grateful for being paired with Johnny Vincent. No matter how hopeless she was at remembering which tools were which and what they were used for, Johnny stayed incredibly patient, repeating things if she didn't understand it the first time, and not even getting mad at her when she accidentally stabbed him in the hand with the screwdriver. He even told Lefty off at one point when he attempted to mock Flora for her inexperience with bikes. It was all rather sweet in Flora's opinion, and she actually found she didn't mind Shop class as much as she initially thought she would. She almost found herself feeling a bit put out that the lesson was over so quickly, in fact.

"See you later, thanks for your help," She stated as she exited the classroom with Johnny, giving him a small smile. The Greaser king nodded, flashing her a grin and uttering out a quick 'Later!' before heading off. Flora, not wanting to pass by the crumbling, grimy fountain which seemed to constantly distribute the faint stench of vomit, decided to cut through the car park instead, passing by a small group of Greasers who seemed to be having a rather intense dispute on whose bike was faster. It wasn't until she reached the car park did Flora realise she would've been much better off taking the vomit-reeking route. The area was littered by male students all wearing scruffy looking white shirts, and Flora instantly recognised them as being members of the Bullies clique, all of who were notorious for targeting innocent students on their lonesome. Flora gulped, wondering if there was a way she could maybe edge around them. Turning to her right, she began to walk as quickly as possible without looking too suspicious or on edge, keeping as close to the garage doors as she could, almost as though she was hoping to blend in with them. Unfortunately, she wasn't so lucky. She'd barely taken three steps when a taunting voice caught her attention.

"Look what we got over here! You take a wrong turn or something, loser?" A boy she recognised as Davis jeered, as he sauntered over, followed by one of his friends. Flora attempted to keep walking, but he quickly blocked her. Trent, the friend who had followed, laughed cruelly as Flora's eyes darted between the two, wondering what they had in store for her.

"Can't you just leave me alone?" She asked rather desperately. Unfortunately, her words seemed to have the opposite affect than intended, and she noticed Trent's eyes narrow. He shoved her roughly, her back hitting against the garage door behind her.

"You trying to start something, pipsqueak? You have to pay a fee to pass through here, unless you wanna get an ass kicking," He sneered, beginning to crack his knuckles threateningly. Flora stared at the two, unsure on what to do. She had money on her, but felt more than reluctant to pay these bullies, however, if she didn't do something soon she had a feeling that things would escalate rather quickly. She'd seen these bullies pick on numerous girls and little kids in the short duration she'd been at this school, and knew they wouldn't object to roughing her up. They were out of sight from the prefects who rarely seemed to come this way, they could probably get away with giving her a few good punches.

"So what's it gonna be, chump? You gonna cough up or not?" Davis demanded, as he began to square up to her. Flora gulped, pressing her back against the garage door, as though she wished it would swallow her up. Deciding that she'd rather not sport a black eye for the week, she nervously began to fumble for some cash, but was immediately stopped as another student joined the fray.

"What's goin' on here, huh? You jerks think you're tough gangin' up on a chick?" Flora exhaled in relief, as for a second time, Johnny Vincent came to her rescue. She hadn't even noticed him approaching them, but she was most definitely glad at his timely arrival. "You better get outta' here before I lose my temper," He growled out, his fists clenched and his stance threatening. The Bullies didn't need telling twice, and they scattered almost immediately, Davis shouting out a panicked apology over his shoulder. Flora turned to Johnny, who was still glaring after the pair of miscreants. She opened her mouth to thank the boy, but he cut her off.

"You're just a magnet for trouble, ain't you?" He stated, turning to face her, his expression now more relaxed, "That's twice now I've had to save your ass," He smirked down at Flora, pulling out his packet of cigarettes and placing one in his mouth, before lighting it.

"I know. I owe you one," She replied, smiling up at him gratefully. If it weren't for him she probably would've had a bloodied nose by now. Johnny smiled in return and nodded, taking a drag on the cigarette.

"Just be more careful from now on, yeah? Wouldn't want anythin' else happening to you. Next time you ain't gonna be so lucky," He warned, nudging her arm gently. Flora laughed lightly, nodding in agreement to his statement. "Anyways, I best be off. I'll see you soon, kid," He turned to head back into the Auto Shop area.

"Thank you!" Flora called after him, smiling as he gave her a small wave, before disappearing round the corner. She found herself rather liking Johnny Vincent. After all, he'd saved her twice now from unwanted situations, _and_ he'd been kind enough to help her out in shop. As she headed back to the girls dorm, she began to wonder when their next meeting would be, and if the circumstances of the meet up would be slightly better, or at least less threatening. She could only hope.

* * *

Rose had never been fond of Gym class. This was mainly due to the fact that she was extremely athletically inept. Whenever she attempted to partake in any sort of athletic activity, she suddenly found herself constantly tripping and falling over her own feet, or bowling over into her teammates, knocking everyone within the perimeter down. This lack of athletic coordination was no different at Bullworth. During her first ever Gym class at her new school, in which she had participated in a rather intense game of dodgeball, she'd somehow managed to hit her teammate, Angie, in the face with the ball, breaking her nose on impact. It was safe to say, as she trudged away from the gym after the gruelling session, she was feeling less than thrilled about her performance. In fact, she was so absorbed in feeling sorry for herself, that she didn't notice two familiar students heading her way until it was too late, and she collided rather hard with one of them.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't femme-boys little girlfriend," Came a mocking voice, which Rose recognised instantly. Once she had composed herself after her collision she finally took a good look at the students in front of her. The mocking voice had of course belonged to Gary Smith, and next to him, looking completely and utterly disinterested was Jimmy. She couldn't help but wonder if the boy ever smiled.

"W-what are you guys doing here?" She asked, still feeling rather disorientated after gym class. Jimmy was too busy checking out Mandy to reply, and instead seemed more than willing to leave the talking to Gary.

"We go here, moron. In case you haven't realised, this is our school too," Gary replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm, which Rose had decided was the only tone he was capable of speaking in. She scowled at his reply.

"That's not what I meant, Gary. What are you doing _here,_ as in, at the _gym_? Because something tells me you two are here to cause trouble," Rose stated, her eyes falling on the slingshot that was clutched tightly in Jimmy's hand, "Where did you get that, by the way?"

"I got it off Davis," Jimmy answered, looking down in a proud manner at the contraption in his hand. Rose opened her mouth to inquire for more details, but was quickly cut off by Jimmy, who apparently could sense the onslaught of questions, "Him and his loser friends tried to start something, and I finished it," He smirked cockily, apparently feeling rather pleased with his small victory. Rose merely nodded, unsure of how to reply.

"Hey, why don't you tag along with us for a bit? Jimmy's gonna try out his new toy on those brainless morons down on the football field," Gary suggested, flashing Rose as mischievous smirk. Rose hesitated, her eyes darting between the two boys stood in front of her. Was this really a good idea? If the football team found out the three of them were messing with them, they'd be beaten to a pulp. Still, Rose didn't really have anything better to do, and she supposed it could be fun.

"W-won't we get in trouble?" She asked, her gaze falling on a nearby prefect who was scolding one of the Preps for giving poor Fatty a wedgie. She had yet to get in trouble with the prefects, however, they had a rather bad reputation, and were known for treating troublemakers rather harshly, no matter how petty the crime.

"C'mon, it'll be fun! Don't be such a wuss!"

"Yeah, if it's any consolation I'm gonna be the one putting my ass on the line here, you two idiots just have to sit and enjoy the show," Jimmy added, as Gary nodded along. Rose found it strange that they seemed so eager to have her tag along on their little mission, considering she'd only ever spoken to them once before. They were Kaden's friends, not hers. Still, she supposed it could be fun. She'd witnessed the Jocks pushing other kids around incessantly, it would feel rather satisfying seeing those brainless jerks on the receiving end for once. Rose nodded, an excited smile slowly working its way onto her face.

* * *

About ten minutes later, Rose found herself seated on the school bleachers with Gary Smith at her side, both of them trying to appear as casual as possible so as not to arouse any suspicion from the Bullworth football team or the seedy coach, Mr Burton. Jimmy had disappeared a few minutes ago into a fairly tall tree that sat at the edge of the football field that gave him the perfect view of the team below. There was no way they would find him up there, and Rose could only hope that she and Gary would remain unnoticed once the shenanigans began.

"Why's that moron taking so long?" Gary asked, clearly starting to get agitated. Rose couldn't help but wonder too. She could just about make out the shape of Jimmy sitting on one of the trees man y thick branches. He had a clear shot at the team, how much longer was he going to take? "C'mon, I wanna see someone get hurt!" Almost as soon as this sentence had passed Gary's lips did something finally happen. At the time, the football team had been running laps up and down the field, when all of a sudden there was a pained yell. One of the jocks had stopped, and was clutching tightly onto his arm.

"WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED, YOU MORON!?" Mr Burton yelled, "GET GOING BEFORE I MAKE YOU DO TWENTY MORE LAPS!" He blew on his whistle, signalling for the student to get back to work. It appeared to fall on deaf ears, however.

"Something just hit me!" Protested the jock. Rose stifled a giggle as she noticed Mr Burton getting steadily more agitated.

"DON'T BE SO RIDICULOUS! GET GOING BEFORE I GIVE YOU-"

There was a high pitched scream, and suddenly another member of the team was rolling on the ground, his hands desperately grasping at his crotch. His expression showed nothing but pure agony as he lay on the grass sobbing "My jewels! My precious jewels!" Rose began to snort with laughter.

"Be quiet, idiot! Ssh! You'll get us figured out!" Gary hissed, not only attempting to stifle his own laughter but Rose's too. He placed a hand over her mouth, which of course did absolutely nothing to calm her giggles.

"Help! I've been SHOT!" Another jock fell onto his back heavily, clutching at his ribs. "SOMEBODY CALL AN AMBULANCE!" Gary began to snigger at this, abandoning his attempts to silence the girl beside him, who was almost close to tears.

"What a moron!" He howled, as yet another jock went down, this time clutching his throat.

"RUN! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! RUN!" At this the football team scattered, sprinting in various different directions, much to Mr Burton's fury.

"WHERE DO YOU IMBECILES THINK YOU'RE GOING!? GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!" Burton hollered, his face a deep, ugly shade of red. The veins on his neck and head were clearly visible now, and he was practically shaking in anger. "GET BACK HERE! PRACTICE ISN'T OVER UNTIL I SAY IT'S OVER!" Bits of spit began to spray from his mouth each time he yelled. His shouting and bawling was all in vain, however, as one by one, the football team went down. Rose had tears streaming down her face as she silent laughed, only making noise to gasp for air.

"I can't breathe, oh my God!" She slumped heavily against Gary's side as she continued her laughing fit. There was a sharp pain in her ribs from all the giggling, but she didn't particularly care, she was having too much fun. "Those dummies had no idea!" Gary grinned at her words, a rather manic glint in his eye.

"Help! Help! I've been shot!" He mimicked in a mocking, high pitched voice, which only resulted in a fresh giggling fit from Rose. "The stupidity of those scumbags still surprises me. How did those morons even make it to high school?" His voice was full of hate and loathing at this point, and there was no hint of humour laced in his tone. Rose couldn't help but wonder what had caused the sudden change, as her giggles slowly trailed away.

"I'm glad I tagged along, that was fun," She stated, glancing over to the tree to see Jimmy still sitting in one of the upper branches. Mr Burton was still hovering around, attempting to round up his football team once again. They would have to wait until the coast was clear for Jimmy to come down. "Lucky we weren't caught,"

"We wouldn't have gotten caught regardless. Jimmy-boy's the one with the slingshot,"

Rose turned to look at Gary with shock written all over her features, "But you can't just ditch him if he gets caught! We're all a part of this!"

Gary glanced down at the girl beside him, a condescending look on his face."It's every man for himself at Bullworth, friend. If you're dumb enough to get caught then you're on your own," He glanced back at the football field, eyeing up a few of the downed jocks, "Shame we didn't get to see any blood,"

Rose blinked in surprise, suddenly feeling rather vulnerable. The way Gary spoke, the way he acted, the way he seemed to disregard everyone around him, it just didn't seem normal. She found herself wishing Jimmy would hurry up and join the two, not wanting to be around Gary on her own for any longer than she needed to be. Thankfully, Jimmy had managed to sneak out of the tree when Burton wasn't looking, and was heading up the bleachers towards the pair, his slingshot carefully hidden away.

"So, was that epic, or was that _epic_?" He had a large, cocky grin on his face, as he stood beside Rose, glancing over his handiwork. "That teaches them 'roid monkeys not to mess with Jimmy Hopkins,"

"Yeah, you don't get much tougher than hiding in a tree and firing at some unsuspecting brainless dummies," Gary stated sarcastically, rolling his eyes as he too got to his feet. Rose followed suit, smoothing her skirt down as she did so. "So, now that you've proved that you're not a complete wimp, how about tagging along for some more fun, friend? I've got something _big_ planned," Rose shot a sideways glance at Jimmy upon hearing these words, noting that he too looked slightly apprehensive. Whatever Gary had planned, it couldn't be good.

"I-I'm not sure..."

"C'mon, femme-boy will be coming along too," Gary pressed further. Rose had no idea why he was so eager for her to be part of his plans, though she found herself curious.

"Why would she care if Petey comes along?" Jimmy asked, looking rather confused, as the trio made their way down the bleachers, deciding that now would be a good time to make an exit from the football field.

"I meant Kaden, idiot!" Gary snapped, before turning his attention back to Rose, "I still haven't figured all the details out but trust me, you _don't_ wanna miss it," Rose glanced at Jimmy, who looked just as clueless as she did. Whatever Gary had planned, Rose guessed that it wasn't something entirely moral. He seemed to get a kick out of breaking the rules, unlike Rose, who much preferred to follow them. After all, rules were put in place for a reason. However, this was her chance to strengthen her friendship with the boys, and in a place like Bullworth, you needed as many friends as you could get. At her old school she'd never had many people to hang round with due to her shy nature, and she was determined that things would be different at this new school. She just didn't want to be left out anymore.

"Okay, I'm in."


	4. In the Doghouse

_**Thanks for all the reviews guys, I really appreciate it! Also I tried to make this chapter shorter but it turned out to be my longest one yet, sorry ^^; Hope you enjoy and keep the reviews coming! ;)**_

* * *

Sledgehammer

Chapter 4 – In the Doghouse

* * *

Their first week at Bullworth had been dreadful. It had taken more than just a few days to grow accustomed to the harsh environment of their new school. Figuring out which students to avoid, which cliques to evade, who to trust, which teachers were reliable, and what areas of the school were best to avoid due to clique control, it was all extremely draining, and as their opening week finally began to draw to a close, Flora and Rose found themselves sprawled about in their dorm room, accompanied by Kaden, all three of them feeling far too exhausted to partake in any activities or explore the Bullworth town, despite it being a fairly nice day. Though rather chilly due to it being October, the sky was completely clear, and the air rather still.

"I can't believe I've only been here for a week already," Flora stated, her voice sounding extremely muffled due to the fact that she had her face pressed down into her pillow. She'd just gotten back from English class, and after witnessing Mr Galloway talk to his reflection in the classroom window after mistaking it for a student, she felt extremely done with the place. "A whole week. It feels like I've been here for _years_. When will it _end?_ " She whined into her pillow, kicking her feet like a toddler.

"I can't believe you've been here for a whole week and haven't been beaten up yet," Kaden stated from his little spot on the floor, his back resting against the wardrobe door. He was currently filing his nails, taking extra care to make sure they were in perfect shape.

"She was close to being beaten up to be fair," Rose piped up, as she lay spread-eagled on her bed. Flora had of course informed them both about her run in with the bullies, as well as her saviour, the Greaser king. She'd tried to appear as nonchalant as possible when informing the two of the incident, however, they'd immediately cottoned on and teased her mercilessly about her small, developing crush on Johnny Vincent. "Until she was saved by _lover boy_ ," Flora rolled her eyes as Rose let out a small giggle. Ever since Flora had told her about the near attack, Rose hadn't let the subject go, grasping as many opportunities as she could to tease the raven-haired girl.

"Well what about you and your lover boy, hmm?" Flora countered, finally flipping over onto her back so she could glance over at Rose, who looked extremely confused at this statement.

"Who's _my_ lover boy? I wasn't aware I had a lover boy? Is he hot?" Rose questioned, sitting up straight so that she had a clear view of her roommate, who now wore a rather devious smile on her face, her green eyes alight with mischief.

"You and that Gary Smith. I saw you two the other day, giggling away on the bleachers. Being all cute and stuff," Flora answered. Upon hearing this, Kaden sat up straight, looking rather alarmed at the gossip. This did not go unnoticed by the two girls. "Who shoved a stick up your ass?" Flora immediately questioned, raising an eyebrow almost judgingly.

"No," Was all the boy answered, shaking his head at Rose, who merely looked completely and utterly baffled. She had no idea what either of her friends was talking about. Gary Smith was most definitely _not_ her lover boy, and Kaden's reaction was more than a bit puzzling. "No. You can't like him. No way, I won't let you,"

"But I don't?" Rose tried, though it appeared to fall on deaf ears.

"Don't you know how crazy he is? He's a psycho! He'll stab you in the back the first chance he gets. Seriously, Rose, stay away. Nothing good can come from crushing on that boy. He is one sadistic fucker," Kaden declared, not bothering to keep his voice down, despite the fact that Mrs Peabody was just downstairs, probably listening out for any sign of trouble amongst the girls. Rose merely stared at her friend.

"But aren't you two supposed to be friends?"

Kaden shrugged, "Well yeah, but I'm not the one who wants to fuck him," Flora giggled at this statement, especially as Rose began to splutter with indignation. She felt completely appalled at the suggestion, confused as to where they'd gotten these ideas from.

"I don't want to fuck him either! Ever! He makes me uncomfortable if anything!" Rose began, still not quite believing that she was actually having this conversation. She didn't even understand how the subject had sprung about. "All I'm asking is why you hang round with him if you dislike him so much," Again, Kaden shrugged in reply.

"I only hang with him because of Jimmy and Petey. They're okay, but Gary's just weird. I was kinda hoping they would've ditched him by now or something," He answered, going back to filing his nails. "I don't think Jimmy or Gary can be friends for much longer, though. They're both far too power hungr-"

"Hey girls, how ar- WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING IN HERE YOU PERVERT!?" Rose had never moved so fast, as she hopped off her bed and dashed over to the Preppy girl who had so suddenly entered the room, placing a hand over mouth so as not to attract the attention of any members of staff. The last thing they wanted was Kaden getting in trouble for being in the girl's dorm.

"Ssh, Pinky! It's okay, it's only Kaden, it's fine!" Rose hissed, trying her best to listen out for the approaching footsteps of Mrs Peabody who could usually hear trouble from a mile away. Thankfully, it seemed her trouble radar wasn't as accurate as usual today. Pinky, however, still looked rather affronted at the fact that there was a boy in the dorm.

"It is _not_ fine! _Boys_ are not allowed in here! And a poor boy like him obviously can't be trusted, he might rob us or something! Get him out of here! NOW!" Pinky stomped her foot, rather like a child, as she stared down at the completely unbothered Kaden, who merely held the brunette girls gaze, his eyebrows raised rather judgingly.

"First of all honey, I bat for the other team-" He began, before immediately being cut off by the enraged Preppie princess.

"What do you mean? What team? Is this some sort of joke?"

"He likes dick," Flora interjected bluntly. Kaden nodded in agreement, as Pinky's mouth began to form an O-shape as the realisation of the situation began to settle in. The answer seemed to appease her, and thankfully put an end to the princess act. Though pleased with the fact that Kaden was not here to spy or creep on any of the female students, the answer she'd received had rendered Pinky speechless, and she merely nodded, seemingly forgetting her reason for barging into the room so suddenly. It wasn't long before she'd composed herself, however.

"A-anyways I'm just here to take you to the cheerleader tryouts, Fiona," Pinky began, finally regaining her usual composure. She ignored Flora's attempt to correct her on the name mishap, and instead barrelled on, "You do still want to be a cheerleader, right?" Flora nodded.

"Oh, goodie! This is going to be so exciting! And Mandy's bound to let you join, she's been saying forever that we need more cute girls for the team! The squads really been lacking with only four of us," Pinky gabbled, grabbing Flora's hand, ignoring all protests as she all but dragged the poor raven-haired girl out of the room. Kaden merely raised an eyebrow, staring at Rose.

"How are you even friends with that brat?" He asked, glancing at the spot where Pinky had previously been with a look of distaste on his face. He'd never been fond of the Preps, and had been even less so after his little run in with Gord the other day. How anyone could stand those delusional, trust-fund fairies, he'd never understand.

"Eh, she's not that bad once you get used to her, I suppose," Rose replied, before glancing at her watch. The two had art next, a subject she was not looking forward to due to her seatmate. However, skipping wasn't exactly an option for her, and the lesson was looming closer and closer. "C'mon, we'd better head to art," She sighed reluctantly, as Kaden hopped to his feet, giving his friend a sympathetic look. Rose had of course informed her friend on what had occurred during their last art lesson, giving him all the details of her falling out with the Greaser boy.

"I'm sure it won't be as bad this time. Peanut's bound to bunk off anyways. It's very rare the Greasers attend lessons. I was actually surprised he was even there on Tuesday, if I'm honest," Kaden attempted to reassure the girl. Rose grabbed her notebook and pen, taking once last look in the mirror before they departed.

"I hope you're right."

* * *

Kaden was not right.

Despite arriving to the class approximately ten minutes early, Peanut was already sat at their shared desk, apparently enthralled in his work already, as he didn't bother to even glance up as the two entered the near-enough empty classroom. Even Ms. Philips hadn't arrived yet, so to see the Greaser boy hard at work already was more than slightly baffling.

"What the fuck is happening to the world?" Kaden muttered, beginning to head over to his desk, with Rose following closely behind. She still had ten minutes left before the lesson began, and she didn't want to sit next to the Greaser for longer than she had to. "It was shocking enough him turning up last week, but being early? That's fucked up," Kaden whispered, glancing over to Peanut, who was currently glaring at the newcomers, obviously sensing they were discussing him.

"Y'know I _do_ know you guys are talkin' about me, right?" Peanut challenged, looking extremely unimpressed. His cold eyes stayed glued to the duo. Rose merely let out a tut, rolling her eyes as she turned away from the boy. It weren't as though they were saying anything bad about him.

"Exactly, we're talking _about_ you, not _to_ you, so butt out, Greaseball," Kaden replied scathingly, copying Rose by turning his back on the disgruntled student. This was not well received by Peanut, who stood quickly, his stance defensive. The movement caught Kaden's attention, and he followed the Greasers actions, getting to his feet at lightning speed. Rose hoped they weren't about to square off against each other in the middle of the art classroom.

"You wanna say that again, loser? Keep talkin' like that and see where it gets you, hero," Peanut began to make his way over to the pair, making Rose feel slightly panicked. Surely he wasn't about to start a fight? Kaden seemed to think so, as he began to ready his fists. Rose had no idea if her friend could actually handle himself or not, nor had she seem him particularly angry before. This new behaviour of his took her by complete surprise.

"Come on then, bitch! Bring it! You wanna start something!?" Kaden began to square up to the taller boy, much to Rose's dismay. There was no way she about to let this happen. No way. Nothing good could come out of letting Kaden do this.

"Oh my God, stop it!" Rose immediately stood between the two boys, pushing Kaden back into his seat, "Just ignore him, Kaden, he's not worth it. You'll only get yourself in trouble. And you had better get back to your seat too!" She turned to Peanut, her gaze hard. He seemed rather surprised at her demand, clearly not expecting her to speak to him in such a manner. Much to Rose's surprise, however, he obliged, holding his hands up in surrender as he backed away.

"Whatever. You're lucky your little girlfriend was here to step in,"

Kaden turned to snap back at the boy, but was quickly stopped by Rose, who muttered "Don't bite. It's what he wants. I'll deal with him once class starts," Kaden merely nodded in reply, following his friends words of wisdom. It was at that point when Ms. Philips stepped into the classroom, followed by a few students who immediately headed towards their assigned desks. Rose took this as her cue to finally make her way to her own seat, albeit reluctantly. She wasn't looking forward to sitting next to the Greaser who was no doubt in a rather foul mood by now.

"That was really uncalled for, y'know," Rose stated as she slid into the seat next to Peanut, not bothering to waste any time. He immediately glanced up at her with a rather offended look on his face, and Rose almost wished she'd kept her mouth shut like she usually did. No doubt they would be at each other's necks for the rest of the hour now.

"What? You think I'mma just sit here whilst you two talk shit about me?" Peanut immediately retorted. He had a point. Though they hadn't exactly been saying bad things about the Greaser, they _had_ been discussing him, and at Bullworth, conversing about another student usually involved a lot of unkind words about the individual.

"We weren't talking about you, though," Rose lied, fully aware that Peanut most likely wouldn't believe her.

Peanut scoffed, "Yeah, whatever. You've had it out for me since the egg thing," It was Rose's turn to look offended now. She hadn't even spoken to the boy since their first ever art lesson almost a week ago, so how Peanut had come to believe that she 'had it out' for him, she had no idea.

"I was actually willing to forget about that, y'know," She answered rather heatedly, her temper beginning to flare at his stubbornness. Was this boy even capable of being civilised? "But you seem intent on annoying me further,"

"Whatever, man. You're just like all those other trust-fund turds,"

" _Excuse me!?"_

"I hope you two aren't arguing over there!" Ms. Philips called from across the classroom, her eyes trained carefully upon both Rose and Peanut. Rose scowled at her seatmate angrily, annoyed that he'd gotten them told off. She let out a huff of indignation before angling her seat and herself away from him, which only earned a scoff from the scorned boy. "There will be no hostility in my classroom, please. Positive minds and attitudes only." At this Rose rolled her eyes, casting a dark glance towards Peanut, who looked almost as equally irritated.

The rest of the lesson passed by agonisingly slow. The atmosphere was unbelievably tense, and though the two refused to so much as glance in each other's general direction, both Peanut and Rose would let out an inaudible series of irate mutters every now and again, no doubt cursing each other. Rose just couldn't understand how one person could be so stubborn and defensive all the time. The whole situation was petty in her opinion. She didn't understand why Peanut couldn't just be a little more civilised. Ms. Philips seemed to sense the animosity between the two, as her eyes seemed to constantly drift over to the incompatible students who sat in dead silence for near enough an hour, not daring to breathe a word to one another in fear of starting another heated disagreement. The last thing Rose wanted was a detention for arguing during lessons, though based on the way she was currently feeling, she wouldn't be surprised if the arguing escalated to her smashing a blank canvas over Peanuts head. Just his mere presence seemed to infuriate her now. How dare he compare her to those narrow-minded, selfish, cruel Preppie pricks?

Rose could have cried with joy when the end of lesson bell finally decided to ring, and she immediately jumped out of her seat, practically racing out the door so she didn't have to be next to that Greaser boy for longer than she needed to be. Luckily, Kaden seemed to sense her need to escape quickly, as he followed her out almost instantly, a deep frown set in his face.

"What was that jerk saying to you?" He immediately demanded, going into protective friend mode. They began to walk towards the stairs.

"Can you believe that _imbecile_ compared me to those rich brats?" Rose stated through gritted teeth. She was utterly livid. "Apparently I've had it out for him since he egged me. That's what he thinks anyways. And no matter what I said he wouldn't listen to me. I mean, I _tried_ to be civilised but honestly he is the most _infuriating_ boy I've ever met! I hope he crashes his bike so he can't make it to any more art classes for a good while," Upon saying this, someone roughly pushed past Rose, knocking her shoulder rather hard. She squeaked in surprise, glancing at the culprit, only to find Peanut glowering at her over his shoulder as he walked away. He looked rather upset, and Rose couldn't help but feel slightly guilty over her harsh choice of words. Kaden, however, seemed to be enjoying the wounded look on the Greasers face.

"Ouch. I think he heard you," He stated with an amused glint in his eyes, as the two watched Peanut hurry off. Rose bit her lip worriedly. She wasn't usually this mean, and she found herself feeling rather distressed in regards to her behaviour.

"M-maybe I was a bit harsh," She mumbled, glancing down in an ashamed manner. Kaden shook his head and patted his friend on the shoulder.

"C'mon, he was being a dick to you. Besides, he'll get over it. I doubt he'll care what some trust-fund kid has to say about him anyways," He teased, nudging Rose gently. "At Bullworth you've got to be a bit harsh at times, otherwise you'll get eaten alive, honey," His words did nothing to quench Rose's guilt, however, as they exited the school building, all thoughts of Peanut were immediately erased from her mind.

"If it isn't femme-boy number two and the shrimp," Came the familiar taunting voice of Gary Smith, who was stood with Jimmy and Pete just outside the main doors. Rose groaned internally. After that dreadful art lesson, she wasn't so sure she could deal with Gary's incessant mocking right now.

"The shrimp?" Jimmy asked, looking rather confused at Rose's newly acquired nickname. Gary merely rolled his eyes in response.

"It's because she's short, numbnuts," He replied in the usual mocking tone of his. It was Rose's turn to roll her eyes now. "Don't question me. Anyways, we're gonna go harass that homeless guy behind the car park. You guys coming?" Rose frowned deeply, not seeing how picking on an innocent homeless man was supposed to be funny. Apparently, Pete shared her sentiments, as he looked rather apprehensive, and Rose had a strong feeling that he had been bullied into accompanying them by Gary.

"Eh, I've got nothing better to do," Kaden agreed with a small shrug. Rose quickly turned her gaze to him in an appalled manner. He couldn't be serious, could he?

"Don't you think this is kinda...mean?" She questioned, eyeing each of the boys up in a scolding manner. Pete nodded quickly, seizing the opportunity to try and back out of the situation.

"S-see? That's what I said. Maybe we should do something el-"

"Quiet, femme-boy!" Gary cut the smaller boy off, before turning to Rose, "It's just a bit of fun. Besides, the old psycho is probably off his head on drugs right now, it's not like he's gonna do anything about it. Now stop being such a wuss and _come on_ ," He stood rather challengingly in front of her, as though daring her to try and oppose what he was saying. The mischievous glint in his eyes as well as the devious smirk on his face gave him a rather devilish look overall, and Rose found herself feeling far too intimidated to make any further objections. Seemingly satisfied with her silence, Gary backed off, and the group of five began to head towards the car park.

"Just stick by me and you'll be fine," Kaden muttered in her ear as they trudged behind Jimmy and Gary. Pete was trailing behind a little, clearly feeling even more reluctant than Rose. "When these two come up with a plan, it's best to just go along with it, trust me. You don't want to get on Gary's bad side," Rose merely nodded. She still felt incredibly worried, but decided against voicing her feelings any further.

"What are you two girlies whispering about?" Gary asked, glancing over his shoulder at the pair. Rose muttered a barely audible 'nothing'. He fell back, walking beside Rose now leaving Kaden no other option than to fall back next to Pete whilst Jimmy led the way.

"C'mon, lighten up! Is the shrimp scared of getting in trouble?" Gary mocked, with his usual smirk plastered on his face. Rose huffed.

"No. I just don't see what's so entertaining about tormenting the homeless,"

"Oh, how _sweet_. Little Rosie-Poo here _cares_ about the homeless. Tell me, Rose, can you be alive and still be made a saint?" Gary's grin widened, as he stared at the girl beside him, clearly enjoying the fact that he seemed to be annoying her. Rose merely huffed again and turned her head away from the boy, refusing to acknowledge him any further. How could one person be so antagonising? Sensing her reluctance to interact with him any further, Gary swung an arm around Rose's shoulders, forcing her to lean into his side. She squeaked in shock, surprised by the sudden contact. "C'mon, man, lighten up! I'm just messing around,"

"Yes, well I don't find it very funny!" Rose snapped, attempting to prise herself out of his grasp. Her actions were ceased when the group suddenly stopped walking. They were now stood in front of a run-down, grimy school bus, which had been placed strategically to block a rather large gap in the old, rickety fence that edged the back of the car park.

"C'mon, it's just through here," Gary stated, removing his arm from around her shoulders and instead pushing Rose through the school bus doors after Jimmy. She stumbled from the force of the push, and would've fallen if it weren't for Jimmy being placed directly in front of her. She collided with his back, though managed to steady herself rather quickly.

"Cut it out, Gary! Stop being such a jerk!" Jimmy snapped, turning to glare at the scarred boy. Gary merely smirked in reply, and held his hands up in mock surrender. Apparently this was as good as an apology for Jimmy, who continued his way up the aisle, making his way out of a second door halfway up the bus. Rose followed suit, hyper aware of how closely Gary pursued. Clearly he had no concept of personal space, and it was starting to render Rose rather flustered. Was this normal behaviour?

As they all filed off the bus and into the fenced area, Rose found herself feeling rather nervous. The other four seemed at complete ease, barging into the homeless mans personal hideout, showing no concerns whatsoever. Thankfully it seemed the man they'd been planning to torment wasn't around, but Rose still refused to enter the area any further, and instead stood rather close to the gate. She felt like she was breaking into someone's house, after all, this was the only home the houseless man knew of at the current time. This was his safe place. It didn't feel right, intruding like this. A dirty and no doubt flea riddled mattress lay in one corner. Other than that, the area was virtually empty, other than a battered shopping cart and a scorched looking metal drum that was clearly used to contain fire during the colder nights. Rose couldn't believe she'd be cowardly enough to tag along with the boys, knowing fine well their intent on bullying an already unfortunate soul. She felt ashamed, and this feeling only intensified as Gary's mocking words commenced yet again.

"Where is this dirty, old perv?" He asked, turning to face the others. He looked rather disappointed at the fact that the place seemed to be abandoned at the present time.

"Y'know, you're not very nice, Gary," Petey stated, starting towards the taller boy. Clearly he had similar sentiments to Rose, though he was brave enough to voice them. His words, though they seemed to have no major effect on Gary, were retaliated with more scathing words from the scarred boy.

"And you're a loser, Petey. One of life's unfortunate's-"

"GET OUT OF HERE, YOU LITTLE SCUM!"

Rose screamed out in fright as a wild looking elderly man, suddenly came storming out of nowhere, his arms swinging wildly as he approached the group. They backed away slightly, Kaden making his way so that he was now standing beside Rose. He didn't find this enjoyable any more. He hadn't actually believed that there was some living behind here. He'd heard rumours of course, but believed them to be just that. Fictitious gossip spread by bored students who had nothing better to talk about.

"Okay this is getting fucked up," He muttered, his eyes glued to the threatening hobo. Rose merely nodded in agreement, feeling rather terrified at this point. Gary, however, seemed thrilled at the newcomer's appearance.

"Well, I guess the rumours _are_ true, Jimmy!" He began in a loud, sardonic tone. "Your dad _does_ live on campus," Rose's eyes widened in fear, as Jimmy's angry protests were drowned out by the incoherent yelling of the homeless man, who clearly was becoming more and more aggravated at the intrusion. He threw a brick at the offending boy.

"OW!" Gary yelled in pain as it made contact with his shoulder. His usual smirk had for once disappeared, and instead was replaced with a rather livid expression. As enraged as he was at the attack, even Gary knew how stupid it would be to attempt to start a fight with an intoxicated, homeless man. Instead, he began to back away. "Let's leave this guy to his welfare payments! C'mon, let's get outta' here!" Rose noticed the note of panic in his voice as he quickly turned around, grabbing her hand as he ran out of the clearing, followed closely by Pete and Kaden. They didn't stop running until they reached the other side of the car park.

"See? _See?_ I _told_ you it was a stupid idea!" Rose stated. It took her a moment to realise her hand was still tightly grasping Gary's, and she quickly pulled away, her cheeks beginning to heat up slightly. She edged closer to Kaden, who looked rather pale.

"W-where's Jimmy?" Pete asked, as he panted for breath. It was clear he wasn't used to so much physical activity. Rose glanced round, expecting to see the stocky boy lurking nearby. There was no sign of him.

"Fuck! You think the hobo got him?" Kaden asked, glancing back at the school bus. Rose bit her lip worriedly.

"Y-you think we should go get help? Tell a prefect or something?" She asked nervously.

"No way! Are you crazy? You tell someone and you put all our asses on the line!" Gary snapped. He looked to be in a rather bad mood, and it was clear that the attack from the homeless man had wounded his ego. Kaden glanced back at the school bus again, feel extremely worried for his friends welfare. Would Jimmy be okay? "It's sink or swim, my friend. If Jimmy gets his ass kicked by that old scumbag then that's his own fault, and if you even _think_ about snitching on us, girly, then I swear to God I will-"

"That's enough, Gary! You're outta' line!" Kaden snapped, stepping closer to Rose in a protective manner. Pete merely stared between the two boys his, eyes wide as the pair stared at each other in a threatening manner. Rose prayed that the two weren't about to fight. "C'mon, I'll take you back to your dorm," Kaden muttered, keeping his eyes trained on Gary in a menacing manner as he grabbed Rose's wrist and began to lead her away from the two boys.

"I-I see what you mean about him now," Rose stated, once they were out of ear shot. She felt rather shook up about the whole ordeal. The way Gary had suddenly turned on her, it was all rather unexpected, and she found herself feeling extremely grateful for Kaden's presence. If he hadn't of been there, who knows what else would have spewed from Gary's mouth. What if he'd taken it further and turned hostile?

"He's crazy, Rose. He'd stab anyone in the back if it meant saving his own ass. He's been getting worse ever since Jimmy arrived here," Kaden informed, shoving his hands in his pockets. Rose nodded, falling silent as the two trudged towards the girl's dorm. She hoped she wouldn't be subjected to Gary's company anymore, however, something told her that this was incredibly unlikely. The way he pushed Pete around, forcing him to tag along to partake in stupid activities, Rose had a feeling that she was going to be facing the same treatment.

* * *

"Oh my gosh! I'm so glad you made the squad! Cheerleading practice is gonna be so much fun with five of us now!" Pinky stated merrily, as she and Flora made their way out of the gym, both adorned in their cheerleading outfits. "Mandy seemed to really like you as well! Which is, y'know, kinda odd actually because she hates almost everybody,"

"Oh, really? I never would've guessed," Flora said sarcastically, her mind reminiscing on the many disdainful glares and scornful comments the head cheerleader had thrown Angie's way, as well as the insulting way she would talk about the other students. Mandy was clearly a big fan of gossip, and seemed to take great joy in spreading humiliating and cruel rumours, particularly in regards to the nerds. However, she'd treated Flora almost nicely, even complimenting her makeup at one point.

"Okay, so cheer practice is every Friday at four, and if you're late or miss a session Mandy will kill you," Pinky informed, "Also, avoid Mr. Burton at all costs. He's such a pervert, I swear he's obsessed with us cheerleaders. I caught him spying on us from behind the bleachers one time and it was _so_ creepy," Flora snorted dryly. Why she wasn't surprised by this news, she had no idea. It seemed nothing at Bullworth shocked her now. How it hadn't been closed down by now was puzzling. It was clearly an appallingly bad school, the teachers were either corrupt or useless, the school equipment and supplies vandalised, and the majority of the students were nothing but bullies.

"Ooh! Mind waiting here a second? I need to go speak to Gord quickly, I'll be right back!" Pinky hurriedly made her way over to the brunette Preppie boy who stood just a little way in from the Harrington House archway. Flora nodded, now feeling rather awkward as she stood by herself near the grimy fountain. She hoped that Pinky was telling the truth when she'd told her she'd be quick, though this seemed unlikely considering how much the Preppie girl seemed to love talking.

Flora shivered, noting how cold it was. Her cheerleading uniform wasn't the warmest of garments, and she found herself wishing she'd changed back into her uniform. She considered heading back to the gym, wondering if she could get changed and make it back before Pinky had finished her conversation with Gord. She decided she wouldn't risk it, just in case Pinky cut her conversation short for once.

"Hey! If it ain't my apprentice," Flora turned round instantly, suddenly coming face to face with Johnny Vincent, who was currently eyeing her new outfit up. She felt herself growing rather hot under his gaze. "I didn't know you were a cheerleader," He stated, his eyes finally returning to her face.

"Yeah, I just finished tryouts before," Flora answered, smiling up at the Greaser King. "I've never been a cheerleader before, I'm kinda hyped," She fiddled with the hem of the cheerleading skirt, trying not to appear too pleased with herself. She did feel rather proud though, considering she'd never been a part of any sort of athletic squad before. It was quite an achievement in her opinion.

"Yeah, well, I like the outfit," Johnny stated, smirking rather cheekily. He scratched the back of his neck in an attempt to appear casual, "It...uh...It suits you," He finished. Flora didn't know if she was imagining it but she could've sworn there was a slight pink tint in his cheeks as he uttered the compliment. It was nothing, however, compared to the blush that now adorned her own cheeks.

"T-Thank you," She said, smiling shyly up at the Greaser boy. Her eyes slid past him suddenly, landing on a girl who stood a little way in the Auto Shop area. She wore a leather outfit, and her short auburn hair was styled into a neat bob. Her pretty features were pulled into a deep frown as she glared over at the two, her eyes full of loathing. Flora's study of the girl was suddenly interrupted by a hand waving in front of her face, and she blinked in surprise, glancing up at the boy in front of her who wore a rather amused grin. Clearly she'd been zoning out.

"H-huh?"

Johnny let out a small laugh at her apparent bemused state, "I said, we still need to figure out a time so I can teach you how to ride a bike," He repeated. Flora nodded, her eyes focusing back on the girl, who continued to glower at her.

"Y-yeah, of course,"

Johnny studied Flora, noting her gaze. He turned round to see what had her so fixated. "Fuck," He muttered, turning back around, a rather worried expression plastered on his face. A look of realisation appeared on Flora's features, as it suddenly clicked in her brain who this girl must be. Johnny's girlfriend, or at least some sort of hook-up. She found herself feeling rather disappointed at the thought. " L-look I'd better go...I'll see you around, kid," Johnny stated, flashing Flora a rather strained smile before he hurried towards the girl, who stood with her arms crossed. It was clear the Greaser King was going to be in the doghouse tonight.


	5. Dodgeball, Honey

_**Guess who's back.**_

 _ **Back again.**_

* * *

Sledgehammer

Chapter 5 – Dodgeball, Honey

* * *

Ever since his rather odd run in with the brunette Preppie during his detention last week, Kaden had been avoiding Gord as much as possible. If he so much as caught sight of those annoyingly fashionable Aquaberry sweaters, he would run off in the opposite direction at lightning speed, determined not to face the Prep boy. Unfortunately, it seemed as though Kaden's luck had finally run out.

Gym class had always been one of Kaden's favourite lessons. He enjoyed sports, he was _good_ at sports. It was the only lesson in this godforsaken school that he actually deemed bearable, despite it being taught by the despicable Mr. Burton. It seemed, however, that Kaden was destined to dislike all his lessons eventually. As soon as he'd exited the changing room and walked onto the court he noticed him. Gord Vendome. The one boy he'd been trying his best to avoid. He felt his face immediately drop as he caught sight of the smug Preppie boy, who was watching him closely, a devious glint in his brown eyes. Was it too late to try and bunk off? Maybe he could try and convince Mr. Burton that he was ill or something of the sort? Kaden couldn't describe why he'd taken such an intense disliking for the brunette boy. Sure, Gord was annoying, smug and had some sort of superiority complex due to his daddy's large pay check. But a lot of students at Bullworth were just as difficult and infuriating, yet Kaden didn't really hold any ill feelings towards them, regardless of how irritating they were. There was just something about that smug smirk that really rubbed Kaden the wrong way.

"What're you staring at?" Jimmy asked, coming up behind Kaden who was currently standing on the edge of the court. His brown eyes were fixated on the Preppie boy. How had he not noticed Gord was in the same Gym class as him last week? How was he meant to avoid the brunette now? And why did Gord have to be in the one lesson Kaden actually enjoyed? It's like Bullworth was determined to suck all the fun out of his life.

"Nothing," Kaden stated, heaving a sigh as they made their way onto the court. Of course he and Jimmy were placed on the nerd team, with Algie, Bucky and Thad. It was always the same. The more popular cliques were always put together, leaving Kaden to join the Nerds every single time.

"C'mon, man, lighten up. I thought you would've been ecstatic to have balls flying at your face," Jimmy joked, elbowing his friend in the ribs.

"Shut the fuck up, dude" Kaden laughed, nudging his friend back, glancing up to see Algie waddling towards the pair as fast as his fat little legs could carry him, followed by Bucky and Thad. Today they would be playing Dodgeball, and Kaden could practically smell the fear radiating from the nerds. It was well known that they loathed this particular activity, mainly due to the fact that the other students would constantly target the nerds, trying to see which nerd would be reduced to tears first. One of the unfortunate souls would always end up having to pay a visit to the school nurse too due to the injuries sustained from the physical game. Usually it was Algie.

"Looks like we're up against these trust-fund fairies today," Jimmy eyed the opposing team up, an intense look of dislike visible on his features. "Let's see who goes running to daddy first when they lose," Kaden snorted, nodding in agreement with his friend. The Preppies hated losing, often threatening to sue for minor in-game injuries if they found themselves on the losing team.

"Okay, losers listen up! We're gonna be playing Dodgeball today!" Mr. Burton barked, calling the class to attention. He rubbed his hands together, looking rather pleased with the lessons concept, "Ah, Dodgeball! How I love the sound of boys crying in the morning! Now, hit as hard and as often as you can, girlies! Don't be afraid to draw some blood!" And with that, the match began.

It seemed as though Jimmy and a few of the Preppies had taken Mr. Burton's words very seriously. Kaden had never witnessed such an intense or violent game of Dodgeball in his life. Algie had somehow gotten elbowed in the face by Justin within the first five minutes of the game, and had to be benched due to his inconsolable tears and wails for his 'mommy'. Jimmy, in retaliation, had lobbed one of his sneakers at the offending Preppie, which left Justin with a rather red and watery eye, which continued to swell as the game continued on. This had sparked Parker to lob the ball in the direction of Jimmy's nether regions, which fortunately missed, instead hitting Bucky in the face, who had stupidly paused mid-game to retie his shoelaces, breaking his glasses in two.

Though he had managed to remain unharmed thus far, Kaden was finding it increasingly difficult to dodge the balls that were being thrown by Gord, who seemed intent on causing some physical damage. Each throw seemed to be more and more forceful, and Kaden found himself fearing for his face. He had no idea what the Preppie was playing at, but Mr. Burton seemed to be incredibly pleased with the aggressive nature of the match. Not once had he blown on the whistle to signal a student was out of order or that a foul was to be given. In fact, he'd applauded quite enthusiastically when Algie and Bucky had been injured, and had even laughed when Jimmy had thrown his shoe at the opposing team. It was only a matter of time before Kaden managed to sustain some sort of injury at the hands of the offending Prep, and that time was now.

It was as though time had sped up. One second, Kaden was throwing a ball at the opposing team, the next, he blinked, and upon reopening his eyes, he was met with a large red ball connecting with his nose.

A cry of pain escaped his lips as he fell to his knees, his hands clasped over his heavily bleeding nose. The feeling of blood dripping from his nostrils and spurting down his palms and wrists made him feel sick. His nose and head throbbed and pounded so heavily that he could only just make out the sound of a furious Jimmy shouting a string of offensive slurs at the Prep who had been responsible for the throw. Kaden didn't even have to look to know who had assaulted him.

"Gord, you dirty scumbag!" Jimmy yelled, making his way over the court towards the smug Prep, who, overall, looked rather amused at the current situation. "You're gonna pay for that!" It was just as Jimmy was about to charge at the smirking Prep did Mr. Burton finally decide that things had escalated enough. A loud screech of the whistle followed by a few insults hurled his way by the gym teacher was enough to stop Jimmy in his tracks. He stopped, breathing heavily as he glared at the brunette Prep in front of him, before reluctantly he turned to face Mr. Burton.

"You think you can continue, boy?" Mr. Burton questioned, turning to look at Kaden, who had stayed in his spot on the floor, his hands still covering his battered nose in an attempt to cease the continuing flow of blood. Kaden raised his eyebrows in disbelief at the stupidity of the question. Did it look like he was capable of continuing? He felt as though he was practically bleeding to death, his nose still spurting out large amounts of blood. Of course he couldn't continue. Kaden shook his head in reply, not daring to open his mouth for fear of receiving a mouthful of his own blood.

Mr. Burton sighed heavily in reply, throwing a look of disgust at the injured boy. "Pathetic!" He snapped, before turning to Gord, "You! You're the one who did this. Take this wimp to the nurse, see if she can fix this girly up," At this Kaden groaned, noting how Gord's smirk widened further at his new orders. Great. He got to spend quality time with the trust-fund fairy. Could this day get any worse? Heaving himself to his feet, he began to storm over to the exit, fully aware of the Prep boy who followed closely behind.

"Slow down, pauper! What's the hurry?" Gord asked once the two were outside, hurrying to catch up with Kaden, who currently felt as though he was about to explode. Out of all the people Burton could have chosen to accompany him to the nurse's office, he just had to choose the most annoying boy in the room. All the ill feelings Kaden had felt towards Gord had heightened immensely. It was obvious that Gord had been out to cause him some sort of injury from the moment the game had began, and Kaden had no idea why. He'd never even properly spoken to the boy until the detention incident, so why Gord had suddenly decided to target him was a mystery.

Trying his best to ignore the Prep who now walked beside him, Kaden finally removed his hands from his face, frowning at the amount of blood that now covered him. His nose didn't feel broken, but it didn't exactly feel great either. No doubt he would be sporting an impressive bruise for the next week or so.

"Ew..." Gord wrinkled his nose at the sight of the red liquid, inching away slightly. Kaden stared at him, a look of disbelief on his face.

"What? You're scared of a little blood?"

"No!" Gord insisted, still looking rather disgusted at the boy beside him, "I just don't want your poor people blood getting on my gym clothes is all," At this reply, Kaden rolled his eyes in exasperation, his temper beginning to flare. How someone could be so insensitive and small-minded baffled him. All he currently wanted was to be as far away from the Prep as possible, and at this thought, he began to walk at a much quicker pace. However, the quick movement and the amount of blood he'd lost in such a short amount of time did not agree with his intentions, as a spell of dizziness suddenly overcame him.

"Fuck," Kaden groaned, stopping still suddenly, leaning over with his hands resting above his knees for support. He closed his eyes as the ground below him span sickeningly, and he prayed that he wasn't about to throw up in the middle of the school grounds for all to see.

"Y-you're not about to die on me, poor boy, are you?" Kaden screwed his eyes shut tighter at the sound of Gord's apprehensive voice. He was probably more concerned that Kaden was possibly about to vomit, most likely worried that his shoes would be splashed with the substance. At this question, Kaden shook his head, though he was not certain. He felt as though he was about to pass out.

The feeling of a hand gingerly rubbing his back caused Kaden to jump, straightening up immediately in alarm as he shoved Gord's hand away, causing the Prep to stumble back slightly. He looked rather shocked at Kaden's rather aggressive reaction.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Kaden demanded, his brows furrowed as he glared at the brunette boy in front of him. The shock of the Prep attempting to comfort him had brought him back to attention, and he no longer felt as dizzy. Instead, he felt rather alarmed.

"Attempting to be of help? Gosh, daddy was right. You poor people are so ungrateful," Gord stated, finally regaining his composure. He eyed Kaden uncertainly, clearly wondering if he was about to lash out again. Instead, Kaden blinked in surprise, shocked that the prep had even attempted to be nice. The Preps had a reputation for being rather cruel and selfish at Bullworth, and they were most definitely not known for being helpful or nice, so why was this rich boy attempting to comfort him?

"Since when have you trust-fund jerks ever been helpful?" Kaden questioned, deciding to voice his confusion. Almost instantly he inwardly cringed at the harshness of his words. Though he disliked Gord immensely, and though Gord was the reason for his current bloody predicament, he supposed the boy had attempted to comfort him in his dizzy state. However, the damage had already been done. For a moment, Kaden thought Gord looked rather hurt, but almost immediately the expression was replaced with a disdainful sneer.

"You know, you're very rude. I can't believe I even dared to touch you, pauper," He spat, clearly feeling rather stung at Kaden's question. All feelings of regret ebbed away at this reply, and Kaden resumed glaring at Gord, who had slowly begun to back away. "I've got better things to do than assist the poor. Try not to bleed out on your way to the nurse...or do...at least then there'll be less scum around here," And with that, Gord turned on his heel, walking briskly back towards the gym. Kaden merely rolled his eyes in response, feeling slightly relieved that he was finally rid of the annoying Prep boy. However, amongst his feelings of reliefs, he also felt something else. Slight guilt, and also confusion. He'd reacted rather harshly towards Gord's attempt at being comforting, and he knew that his reaction was uncalled for, however, he also felt incredibly confused. Why had Gord even attempted to comfort him in the first place? After all, it had been clear that Gord had been intent on causing Kaden harm during their game of dodgeball, so why even try to act nice now? It just didn't make sense to Kaden, and thinking about it so much only left him feeling even more confused.

At this, he let out a heavy sigh, deciding that for now it was probably best he focus on getting his face fixed. Slowly, Kaden began to trudge to the nurse's office, attempting to banish all thoughts of the Preppie boy away.

* * *

Flora felt embarrassed at how eager she was for Shop class and no matter how much she attempted to deny it to herself, deep down, she knew the reason for her newfound enthusiasm. This reason was none other than the Greaser King. Despite the fact that she had been at Bullworth for a short duration of time, Johnny Vincent had her intrigued. No doubt she was starting to develop a silly crush on the boy, though she would never admit this, of course. So, it was fair to say, when she finally stepped inside the classroom, already five minutes late to the class, she felt rather disappointed upon realising that the boy who had piqued her interest so much was not there. This disappointment was only increased further when she was paired with Vance, who undoubtedly was much less patient with her lack of bike knowledge than Johnny had been. However, despite scolding her a few times for being so incompetent with bikes, Flora found herself warming up to the Greaser boy. Vance was rather funny, and when he wasn't being impatient with her, he was actually rather nice, even if he did have a weird obsession with his hair, which Flora found out about when she accidentally nearly clattered him with the spanner.

"Hey! Watch the hair, will ya!?" He declared, ducking in an attempt to avoid being hit by the metal tool, "You're a walking hazard, girly, I'm telling ya," Flora merely smiled sheepishly, placing the spanner gently back on the workbench, deciding that it were perhaps best if she avoided touching anything for now. Vance was right. Earlier she'd somehow managed to spill a small canister of oil on the floor, which the shop teacher, Neil, hadn't been too pleased about, and before that she'd managed to get Vance's hand jammed within the bike's chain. Needless to say, Vance was spot on about her being a walking hazard when it came to shop class.

"Remind me to never work with you again," Vance muttered, smoothing his hair down in an attempt to ensure that it was still perfectly maintained. Flora knew he wasn't joking, but his statement wasn't meant nastily. It was just that she was appallingly incompetent.

"I'm trying," She attempted to reason.

"Well don't, kid," Vance cut her off, slapping her hand away as she attempted to reach for another tool. "Just stand there and look pretty, alright? I'll do the rest, we ain't wanting anymore injuries today," He stated, flashing her an amused grin to show he was teasing. Flora was more than happy to oblige, however, as her eyes fell upon the now rather bruised hand of the small greaser.

"Just be grateful I haven't stabbed you with a screwdriver yet, okay? Johnny wasn't as lucky last time," She paused suddenly after this statement, wondering if she would be able to casually probe into Johnny's absence without appearing too concerned or arousing suspicion. The last thing she wanted was for people to start thinking that she had a crush on the Greaser King, which, of course, she did. Flora just wasn't ready to accept this fact yet. Never had she developed a crush so quickly.

Clearing her throat, she decided to question Vance, hoping that he would think nothing of it, "Speaking of Johnny...uh... how come he's not here today?" Flora asked in what she hoped was an offhand voice. Unfortunately for her, as soon as the question escaped her lips, Vance turned to face her, a look of curiosity on his face.

"Why? What's it to you where he is?" He asked. Flora shrugged, feeling rather nervous. Had she appeared too interested? Did Vance think something was up? What if he went and told Johnny that Flora had been asking after him? Just the mere thought of it made Flora cringe internally, and already she could feel the embarrassment sinking in. She wished she'd just kept her mouth shut.

Vance eyed her curiously for a few more seconds, before he turned back to the bike he was working on. "Look, I know why you're asking after him. He's a popular guy with the ladies, but I'm telling you, kid, you should be careful," He replied, keeping his voice low so that the two wouldn't be overheard. Flora immediately felt grateful towards the Greaser, glad that he seemed to be keeping her interest secret. However, his words had done nothing to quench her curiosity, and instead she found herself wanting to know more. Why did Vance feel the need to warn her? She decided to question him further.

"What do you mean?"

"He's already got a chick, Lola," Vance began. The way he said the girls name made Flora suspect that he held a large dislike for this Lola girl. "They're always breaking up and then getting back together, the girls got him whipped," Again, Vance didn't sound too pleased.

"Why are they always breaking up?" Flora questioned further, not bothering to hide her curiosity at this point. She wanted to know more. Much more.

"I mean, I shouldn't really be telling you this, y'know? But Lola's kinda got a reputation for being the school slut, and no matter how many times we tell Johnny, he just won't listen. The poor guys in love, or so he says," Vance finished up with the bike in front of him, wiping his oily, blackened hands on a nearby cloth as he turned to face Flora, "Look, Lola ain't gonna be happy if she hears you've been asking about Johnny, and if she catches you hanging round him, it ain't gonna be pretty. You seem like a nice girl though, so I'm gonna give you some advice, okay?" Flora nodded in response, wondering what kind of wisdom Vance was about to share with her.

"Stay away from Johnny. Lola's got the poor sucker whipped, you'll only end up getting hurt," As soon as this sentence had fully escaped Vance's lips, the sound of the school bell rang, signalling that class was over. He gave Flora a curt nod, before he began his departure, leaving the raven-haired girl to stare after him curiously, her mind now full of unanswered questions.

Just how bad was this Lola girl?

* * *

Someone was egging the dorm again.

After the last time, in which she had been left with egg in her hair and tears in her eyes, Rose found herself feeling reluctant to go out and confront the culprit. However, she trying her best to concentrate on her Math homework, and it was proving to be immensely difficult with the sound of eggs splattering against the dorm walls and windows. She wondered why Mrs Peabody, the dorm hall monitor, didn't venture outside to investigate the incident. It seemed as though the egging of the girls dorm was a regular occurrence, one that was considered so normal that it wasn't worth punishment.

Rose glanced at her roommate, Flora, who was sat silently on her bed with a book in hand, apparently unbothered by the constant smashing of eggs against the exterior of the dorm. Rose sighed letting her head slam against the desk, and she let out an exasperated groan from her slumped position.

"How is that not annoying you?" Rose whined, glancing up at her roommate, who merely looked amused.

"I dunno, I'm good at blocking shit out," Flora replied, shrugging, "Why don't you go out and say something to them if it's bothering you that much?" She grinned mischievously at her friend, clearly remembering what had happened the last time Rose had went out to confront someone for egging the dorm.

"What? And end up with a head full of egg again? No thanks," Rose snorted, straightening up slightly. Flora laughed.

"C'mon, no one's that unlucky. If you get egged again I'll streak through the halls naked,"

At this, Rose laughed, though her amusement was cut off by a particularly loud splatter of egg. If no one else was going to take action then clearly she was going to have to do something about the egging herself. Perhaps she should gather some of the other girls to egg the boy's dorm as an act of revenge. She looked at Flora, wondering if she would be up for it.

"Fancy coming to egg the boy's dorm with me?" She asked, grinning at the raven-haired girl. Flora merely chuckled and shook her head.

"And start an egg war? I don't think so. Unlike you I've never had egg in my hair, and I'd rather avoid it from happening anytime soon,"

Rose sighed, glancing at the veiled window. Again, as the egging continued, she wondered how many eggs one person could carry. It seemed as though whoever it was had an endless supply. Maybe Bullworth had some kind of weird egg dealer. She found herself not feeling surprised at the thought, and she began to wonder if her theory was indeed true.

Sighing yet again, she finally got to her feet, "I'll be back in a second," She stated, heading towards the door. Flora merely snorted, muttering a quick 'good luck' to her roommate. No doubt she thought Rose's intentions of confronting the culprit was stupid, considering what had happened to Rose the last time she had done so. However, the brunette girl couldn't take it anymore. The sound of eggs splattering against the dorm had developed into a noise that made her want to rip her own hair out, it aggravated the girl that much. She just couldn't go on like this.

It took her less than a minute to head to the ground floor and exit the building unnoticed, and immediately upon exiting the dorm her eyes fell upon the culprit. She sighed in an exasperated manner as she headed towards the familiar figure, knowing that this confrontation would undoubtedly become more heated than she would've liked. Not only this, but she realised that for someone who hated confrontation she found that she was involved in them far too much for her liking. It was impossible to avoid them at Bullworth, it seemed.

"Really? _Again?_ " She asked as she stopped in front of Peanut, who was just about ready to lob another egg at the building, which was currently littered with egg yolk and debris. "What is it with you and egging the dorm?" Rose asked, ducking as Peanut chucked the egg in hand at the building, where it splattered against one of the second floor windows with a loud crack. He paused, turning to look at the smaller girl, an expression of intense dislike written all over his face.

"Well, if it isn't the trust-fund princess. What do _you_ want?" He asked, readying another egg to throw at the dorm. Rose quickly grasped onto his wrist in an attempt to stop the Greaser, causing his gaze to snap back to her in surprise.

"Will you just stop it? Don't you know how annoying that is?" She demanded, glaring up at him, her hand still holding tightly onto his wrist. Peanut merely glanced down at her hand in a confused manner, clearly disgruntled at her intrusion.

"That's kinda the point," He stated, pulling his wrist out of her grasp as he turned to fully face her.

Unsatisfied with the Greaser boy's answer, Rose decided to confront him further, refusing to admit defeat. "Are you trying to annoy me on purpose or something? Why are you doing this?" Rose questioned, wondering what it would take to get Peanut to stop egging every week. It seemed as though he was refusing to be civil, however, as he merely snorted at her series of questions, looking at the Prep girl in disbelief.

"You think I'm doin' this to annoy you? Well guess what, rich girl, the world doesn't revolve around you. I'm not doin' this for _you,_ " Peanut snapped, glaring down at Rose, who found herself feeling rather shocked at how harsh his tone sounded. Though the boy annoyed her, she didn't dislike him immensely. However, judging by the way he was speaking to her, Peanut seemed to absolutely loathe her, and she wasn't entirely sure why. _He_ was the one who had egged her, which was what had caused the ill feelings between the two in the first place. _He_ was the one who kept bringing up her rich background, assuming that she was some sort of spoiled brat, when in reality all Rose wanted to do was study in peace, without the sound of eggs smashing against the dorms exterior. She wasn't out here confronting him because she was richer than him, she was confronting him because he was stopping her from concentrating on her studies with his regular egging of the dorm at night.

"Why do you hate me so much?" Rose asked, deciding to take a different approach to the situation. Maybe if she could understand him better, she would be able to convince him to stop, or would at least be able to develop some sort of compromise between the two.

"It should be me askin' you that. I heard what you said to that other kid after art, y'know, you ain't as nice as you're tryna' make out," Peanut countered.

Rose opened her mouth, ready to snap back at the boy, but suddenly she paused. As the realisation hit her, the feeling of guilt washed over her, leaving the girl to glance down at the ground shamefacedly. There was truth to his statement. She remembered calling him various names, wishing that he would injure himself by crashing his bike, and she realised that the Greaser was right. She hadn't exactly been the kind towards him. In fact, she supposed he was justified in disliking her so much. She felt rather bad, and her guilt was clearly written all over her features. "Y'know what...j-just forget about it," Peanut muttered, clearly beginning to feel uncomfortable at the obvious shame Rose was emoting. He turned, clearly with the intent to leave.

"Wait," Rose sighed heavily, deciding that she had better apologise. She had treat him no better than the other Preps had, and so it was only natural that he would assume that she was a selfish rich brat too. "I'm sorry for being a bitch. I don't hate you," She stated, feeling rather awkward as she did so. She wasn't sure how the Greaser boy would take her apology. Not only that, but her apology felt rather awkward. She didn't quite know what else to say. She half expected him to laugh in her face or something of the sort. Maybe even throw a few insults her way.

What she did not expect, however, was for Peanut to suddenly become as awkward as her, yet there he stood, looking down at the ground and rubbing the back of his neck in an uncertain manner.

"O-oh...okay," He looked up at her warily, as though expecting her to suddenly start laughing at him, declaring her apology to be a joke. Instead, she offered him a small smile. "I'm sorry too...I guess..." He muttered, still looking rather uncomfortable. It was obvious to Rose that he wasn't used to apologising, or even being apologised too, but she felt as though it had worked, and that the two would no longer be at odds. They obviously weren't friends, but at least they were no longer at each other's throats. An awkward silence fell over the two. Rose cleared her throat.

"Does this mean you're not gonna egg the girl's dorm anymore?" Rose enquired, smiling up at the Greaser teasingly. She knew that this would most likely not be the case, and that Peanut would resume the egging within a week or so, but the awkwardness of the situation was becoming unbearable. She hoped her question would help ease the uncomfortable tension between the two.

It seemed to work. Peanut smiled in reply, shoving his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. It was the first time Rose had ever seen him smile, and she had to admit, it looked rather cute. He opened his mouth to reply, but before had had a chance to utter out any words, he was suddenly cut off by a familiar voice which appeared to be calling out to Rose.

"Hey! Shrimp! Get your ass over here, you moron!" Rose didn't even have to look to know it was Gary Smith who had called her. She exhaled heavily, before glancing up at Peanut, meeting his gaze. He no longer looked as relaxed as he had a moment ago. Instead, his face was cold and hard. Clearly this was another student who wasn't fond of Gary.

"Looks like you better go, your psycho boyfriend needs you,'" Peanut muttered before walking away, and Rose couldn't help but note that he sounded rather bitter. The sudden turn of his mood also surprised her, one minute he was smiling, the next, his expression had turned back to the cold glare that she was so acquainted with, yet no longer wished to be. Still, she couldn't dwell on the retreating Greaser boy for too long, instead, she found herself rather curious and slightly worried as to why Gary was requesting her presence. Walking over to where he stood, she was greeted by Jimmy, Pete and Kaden, all of who looked almost as apprehensive as her.

"What's up?" She questioned, shivering slightly at the autumn breeze which nipped at her skin. She hoped she wouldn't have to be out here for long. Gary merely grinned deviously, indicating that they should follow him. Reluctantly, the group did.

"C'mon, I've got something fun planned. You losers are gonna _love_ this," Gary stated. Rose couldn't help but doubt this statement. Nothing Gary ever planned was fun. It always had some sort of dark, messed up twist that always left her feeling frightened. For example, the slingshot attack on the jocks which had taken an uncomfortable turn, or the tormenting of the homeless man behind the school bus. No. This was not going to be fun at all, but Rose found herself feeling too afraid to say no to the boy.

There was just something about him that frightened her, but Rose knew it was better to stay on his good side. The thought of having Gary Smith as an enemy was something that left her feeling quite terrified.


	6. With Friends Like These

Sledgehammer

Chapter 6 – With Friends Like These

* * *

She felt as though she'd been walking for hours.

Not only that, but Rose currently had no idea where she was. All she knew was that she was cold, scared, and could barely see a thing. It had to be nearing curfew, yet Gary still had them following him through a series of tunnels, which they had accessed by climbing over the wall beside the library. His eyes were full of excitement and mischief, and it seemed as though the devious grin on his face was now a permanent feature, for it had not faltered once during their journey.

Both Kaden and Jimmy looked reluctant, though they knew better than try to protest. When Gary had a plan, it was best to just go along with it. The boy couldn't and wouldn't take no for an answer. However, Rose was comforted to see that Pete looked almost as terrified as she did, but like Rose, he was far too scared of Gary to say no, and instead they followed on, wishing that the night would soon be over.

"Do you have any idea where he's taking us?" Rose whispered to Kaden, as she tried her best to keep up with her friends. The ground wasn't exactly even, and she found herself almost tripping a number of times due to the lack of light. She could only just make out the shadows of Gary and Jimmy walking ahead, followed by the smaller silhouette of Pete, who was visibly shaking.

"He refused to tell us," Kaden muttered back, sounding rather irritated by this point, "He just kept saying that he had something fun planned and that we wouldn't wanna miss it. You know what Gary's like, he just kept pushing so in the end we agreed to tag along," He linked arms with Rose as she nearly fell yet again, feeling rather concerned for his friend. Her uniform was a lot colder than theirs was, and she was clearly struggling to keep up with the gang.

"But why'd he insist on bringing me along?" Rose questioned, not quite understanding why she kept getting invited on these little twisted adventures. She wouldn't have classed any of the boys as her friends, other than Kaden, who she had grown quite close to. In fact, the way Gary often spoke to her was less than friendly, she didn't feel as though the boy liked her in any sort of way. He just seemed to enjoy tormenting her. Perhaps he'd invited her along so that he could harass her further.

Kaden glanced at Gary, making sure he was out of earshot, before giving Rose her answer, "Because he sees us as his little gang now. We're his cronies. We're just people he can use to push his way to the top of-"

"Will you two losers hurry up? We're almost there!" Gary's voice suddenly yelled, and as the two glanced over to where he stood, they realised he was right. There seemed to be a light shining through at the end of the tunnel, and Rose couldn't help but feel relieved. She didn't exactly feel comfortable wandering around in the dark, especially not when in the company of Gary Smith.

"This is gonna be great!" The boy continued, his voice laced with excitement. Whatever he had planned for them was something he had been anticipating greatly, and Rose couldn't help but feel extremely nervous at this. Her stomach twisted uncomfortably as an ominous feeling washed over her entire being. She felt sick.

"I think we should turn back," She muttered in Kaden's ear, "It was stupid for us to tag along, something's not right,"

"You think Gary would've taken no for an answer?" Kaden retorted, staring darkly at the figure of the boy, who had now hurried ahead. Jimmy and Pete began to jog after him. Not wanting to be left behind in the dark tunnel, Kaden grabbed Rose's hand and began to hurry after the three boys, "C'mon, let's just get this over with,"

It wasn't until they had exited the tunnel and stepped out into the night did Kaden realise Rose was right. They _should_ have refused to tag along, regardless of how unpredictable and scary Gary could be, for before the group of five stood a large, foreboding building. It wasn't just any building, however.

"Happy Volts Asylum," Kaden stated staring through the fence uneasily. He turned to face Gary, who looked positively delighted. This was clearly his surprise, but what exactly was he planning to do? "Is this some kind of sick joke? Why the _fuck_ have you brought us here?" It was obvious that Kaden was beginning to feel on edge, to the point where he almost felt scared. He'd heard many rumours about the asylum, and none of them were good. He wanted to stay as far away from the place as possible.

Before Gary could answer, he was cut off, by a positively terrified Pete, who was clearly beginning to panic. "N-No way am I going in there, Gary! This is sick!" He looked at the rest of the group, his eyes wide with fear. "You guys can do what you want, but I'm outta here!" He stated, heading back into the tunnel. Gary laughed in a rather maniacal way as he watched the smaller boy disappear into the darkness.

"Go on them, femme-boy, run away like you always do! You're such a _loser_ , Petey!" He yelled after the boy, though it seemed as if his taunts fell upon deaf ears, as Pete did not return. "What about you wimps? You too scared to tag along too?" Gary demanded, turning to the rest of the group. Jimmy quickly straightened up, crossing his arms over his chest. Clearly he took this as a sign that Gary was challenging him, and immediately he became defensive.

"No way! I'm not scared of anything, I'm in," Jimmy declared, glaring at Gary in a defiant manner. Rose glanced at Kaden, unsure of what was going on.

"W-we're not _actually_ going in there, right?" She questioned, glancing at the boys nervously. If Gary's plan was to sneak into the asylum for a bit of fun then he was clearly more insane than she had realised. No wonder he had such a questionable reputation around the school. He was clearly lacking a great deal of sanity.

"No, we've just come here to _stare_ at it...of _course_ we're going in, moron," Gary snapped, his voice laced with sarcasm, as per usual. Rose merely looked at Kaden, hoping that he would support her. He clearly hated the idea of breaking into an asylum, however, he hadn't turned back yet, and Rose was certain that her friend was actually considering tagging along with Gary and Jimmy. Rose glanced back at the tunnel, not keen on the idea of having to make her own way back to the school in the dark. She wondered if she could perhaps catch up with Pete.

"So?" Gary questioned, suddenly taking a step towards her. Rose stared up into those deep brown eyes, wondering just what she had gotten herself in to, "You in, or you out? We can't just _stand_ around here forever, y'know,"

Rose merely gulped, casting a dark glance back through the fence, her eyes catching sight of a few orderlies who were patrolling the grounds. What if they got caught? They would be in so much trouble. That and the thought of exploring an asylum absolutely terrified her. There was bound to be a few dangerous individuals inside. What if they accidentally bumped into one of the more violent patients?

"I-I'm not sure this is a good idea..." She began, her voice shaking with fear. She didn't want to walk back on her own, but she also didn't want to sneak into the asylum. What was she to do?

Gary, apparently sick of her apprehensiveness, merely groaned loudly, and grabbed her wrist, "Just come _on,_ it'll be fun! It's only a bunch of crazy people, it's not like anything's gonna happen," He began to pull her along behind him, with both Jimmy and Kaden following closely behind. Rose couldn't help but wonder how they were supposed to break in. A tall, chain-link fence surrounded the entire building and its grounds, and it was obviously going to be impossible to climb it without getting spotted by one of the orderlies. However, Gary seemed to know a way in, as he stopped before a tree, of which one of the thick branches stretched over onto the other side of the fence. This clearly wasn't his first time at sneaking into Happy Volts.

"You first, Jimmy," Gary stated, indicating for the stocky boy to start making his way up the tree. Jimmy seemed only too happy to oblige, and immediately began his ascent. Kaden followed, throwing a concerned look at Rose before doing so. He wondered if he should perhaps back out and walk the poor and clearly terrified girl back to her dorm, however, the thought of going against Gary's plans made Kaden feel incredibly uneasy. Never before had he felt this afraid of Gary Smith, however, recently he had noticed that since the arrival of Jimmy, Gary's behaviour had slowly become more erratic and strange, and now, for the first time ever, Kaden found the scarred boy rather intimidating. He felt rather helpless at this point.

As the two boys climbed the tree and hopped over the fence, Gary nudged Rose, indicating it was her turn. Rose turned to glance at the tree she was to be climbing, gulping nervously. She'd never climbed a tree in her life, what was she supposed to do? What if she _fell_? Sure it wasn't an immensely tall tree or anything, but it would still hurt if she happened to lose her grip. Rose glanced at Gary, as though seeking some sort of reassurance. Of course, she received none, however. It was Gary Smith after all. He wasn't exactly the most comforting or sensitive person.

"What? Are you just gonna stand there like a moron?" He pushed her towards the tree, looking rather impatient. Kaden and Jimmy were crouching on the other side of the fence, their eyes trained upon the orderlies patrolling the grounds. This was such a bad idea, and yet, Rose found herself finally making her way to the base of the tree, where she gingerly grasped hold of the vines that littered the trunk, and began to haul herself up. It wasn't as hard as she had imagined. Sure, it required a certain amount of strength, but the vines and various branches made it easier for her to pull herself up, and before she knew it, she was almost at the top. It was going rather well, considering how nervous and shaky she was.

"So, tell me," Gary's voice came from somewhere down below, as he waited for his turn to climb over, "Is pink your favourite colour or just the one you chose for today?" Rose's eyes widened at his words, and she glanced down, squeaking in embarrassment as she noticed Gary was stood at the very base of the tree, his eyes trained on her figure. He was looking up her skirt.

"You pervert!" Rose hissed, finally reaching the designated branch that she needed to be on to jump over the fence. Upon reaching it she quickly pulled herself onto it in a sitting position, to try and prevent him from staring up her skirt anymore. As she glared down at him, she was met only with a mischievous smirk. She couldn't dwell on the scarred boy for long, however, as she realised that she somehow had to jump from the branch onto the grassy earth below, without hurting herself. She wasn't the most graceful, but thankfully, with the help of Kaden who was there to steady her once her feet met the hard ground, she managed to drop down without falling over or sustaining any injuries. Immediately she ducked down beside the two boys as they waited for Gary to join them. Her fear had heightened immensely as the realisation of what they were attempting to do fully sunk in. She had just broken into an asylum, she was officially a criminal.

"This is so illegal," She whispered to Kaden and Jimmy, her voice shaking slightly. To say she was terrified was an understatement. If they got caught, which was more than likely, they would be in huge amounts of trouble. They could be expelled. What if the police got involved too? It would be put on her record.

"I know right," Jimmy agreed, though instead of sounding apprehensive and worried, he instead sounded rather excited. Clearly the concept of breaking into an asylum was one he found amusing. Thankfully, there was one person who seemed to share her concerns. Kaden grasped her hand tightly, giving it a small, reassuring squeeze.

"C'mon, we're gonna be okay," He muttered, looking into his friends eyes in what he hoped was a soothing manner, "We'll be in and out before you know it," Of course, Kaden didn't know for sure how long they would be subjected to exploring the asylum, nor did he know if they would manage to escape without getting caught. He could only hope that things would run smoothly. However, as Gary finally dropped down from the branch above next to the rest of the gang, he couldn't help but feel incredibly doubtful. This was such a stupid idea, and the concept of them managing to get away with this, without getting caught was equally as absurd.

"Okay, morons, here's the plan," Gary muttered, his eyes bright with excitement. He'd clearly reached his peak, and Rose could tell he was practically itching to get started with the exploration of the interior of the asylum. "We're gonna split up for a little bit. Jimmy, Kaden, you losers are gonna cause a distraction and lead the guards away from the entrance," He stated, his voice full of authority. The other two knew better than to argue, and Jimmy nodded, a look of determination on his face. Kaden threw Rose a worried look, before he reluctantly crept after Jimmy. Rose turned to Gary nervously, wondering what he had planned.

"W-what are _we_ gonna do?" She asked, noting that his grin had widened even further. There was a strange look in his eyes which were currently glinting deviously in the moonlight. Overall, he looked rather devilish, and Rose's nervousness heightened immensely, as she thought back to a few minutes ago when she'd caught him staring up her skirt. She hoped he wasn't about to try anything, and that him sending Jimmy and Kaden away to cause a distraction wasn't just some creepy tactic to get her alone. Thankfully, however, it seemed as though the only intent he held tonight was breaking into the asylum.

"We're gonna get ready to break in, princess. The guards won't stay distracted forever," He stated, his voice laced with some sort of twisted delight. He was enjoying this far too much. He seemed to hold no fear, as though he were fully confident that they wouldn't get caught. Again, it made Rose wonder if he'd attempted to break into the asylum before.

"You've done this before, haven't you?" She questioned, following him as he skirted behind a few bushes, slowly creeping his way to the main entrance. He stopped suddenly, grabbing Rose's wrist and drawing her closer into the shadows as a guard walked past the particular bush they were hidden behind. He turned to glance at her, and Rose found herself feeling extremely uncomfortable at their close proximity.

"Done what?"

"Broken into the asylum?" Rose elaborated. Gary shrugged, grinning in a mysterious manner, before he returned his gaze to the nearest guard, who was stood directly in front of the entrance to the asylum.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say I broke in..." Gary replied. Rose hoped he would elaborate on this statement further, as her curiosity had indeed been piqued. What did he mean? He hadn't denied being here before, but what did he mean by saying he hadn't broke in? Had he been a patient here? Perhaps he had some relatives who were patients of the asylum? But then why would he purposely attempt to break in? It was actually a rather disrespectful and mocking thing to do, as though he thought the asylum to be some sort of joke. Before Rose could dwell on her thoughts any more, a loud disruption erupted from the far side of the grounds, and it seemed as though Jimmy and Kaden had been successful in creating a distraction.

"Hey! What's going on!?" A nearby guard yelled, as he and a fellow orderly ran towards the shouting and yelling of voices which had interrupted the quietness of the night. Rose turned to look at Gary, wondering what they were to do next. Her entire body was shaking, and it wasn't just from the cold. Her fear, if possible, had intensified further, and she found herself regretting not following Pete back to the school. She would never forgive herself for being so stupid.

Gary began to creep forward, "Wait here a second," He muttered, beginning to emerge from his hiding place. That was when Rose began to panic. No way was she being left alone in this place, even if it were for a mere matter of minutes. She was scared beyond belief, and in her state of terror, she quickly grasped onto Gary's hand, pulling him back towards her. For a moment the boy looked surprised at her behaviour, as Rose practically clung to his arm in terror. However, it wasn't long before his expression soon turned mocking, and he started down at Rose with his usual sardonic grin.

"You're such a _wuss_ ," Gary laughed, not bothering to keep his voice down, "Look, princess, I'll be back in a second, okay? I'm just gonna to check to see if I can spot those two idiots," Rose assumed this was his weird way of being reassuring, as after this sentence had passed his lips, he squeezed her hand gently. Rose gulped and nodded, not feeling comforted at all. Nevertheless she took a step back, returning back to her hiding spot as she watched Gary sneak off into the shadows of the grounds.

Various loud voices still rang out in the air, and Rose couldn't help but wonder what sort of distraction Kaden and Jimmy had caused. She attempted to peek over the shrubs she was hidden behind, but spotted no one, not even one of the orderlies. Her anxiety heightened as she realised how alone she was, and soon she found herself wishing for Gary's company again. He'd only been gone for around a minute, yet already the darkness and isolation was closing in on her. Her heart pounded rapidly as she took another glance at the grounds from her hiding place, again seeing no one. Maybe she should try and make her way back to the school? But how was she supposed to get out. Was she going to have to climb the fence? Or was there perhaps another tree in the asylum grounds that would assist in skirting the enclosure? It was a tempting idea, but as her eyes began to search for an escape, she realised that the grounds had suddenly become deadly quiet. Where was everyone? Slowly, she stood, noting that a few orderlies were beginning to make their way back to their patrol routes. Did this mean the boys had been caught and thrown out? Was she the only one left? Carefully, she began to creep in the direction that Gary had disappeared. She had no idea what she was planning on doing. A small part of her hoped that she would manage to find the boys, however, it seemed as though her luck had finally ran out. She'd barely taken five steps when a voice rang out behind her.

"Hey! You're not supposed to be in here!"

Rose felt her stomach drop, and her blood run cold. Slowly she turned, her dread increasing as behind her stood a rather stern looking orderly. Taking one last desperate look around her, she realised just how hopeless the situation was. The boys had disappeared, she had no idea where they were, and she had no plan of escape. She was doomed.

"You're in a lot of trouble kid,"

* * *

The orderly had been right. Rose was indeed in a great amount of trouble. In fact, when they had released her from the police station a few hours later, informing her to make her way straight back to the school, she was still in shock. She hadn't expected it to escalate to this. Not only would they be informing the principle, her father was also going to be informed. The sheer panic that had washed over her upon receiving this news had been devastating, and after that, she had found it impossible to control her tears. Her father was going to be so mad at her, and she was terrified of what he would say upon finding out. And what was going to happen to her once Dr. Crabblesnitch found out? She was probably going to be subjected to over a month's worth of detentions, and the thought only made her tears fall harder.

Soon huge sobs racked her entire body, to the point where she had to stop in the shadows of a nearby alleyway, where she sank down with her back against the cold, damp wall. She was so stupid. She should've followed Pete the moment he'd decided to head back to the school. Sure, she was afraid of Gary, but look where her fear had gotten her. She was in a huge amount of trouble, and the only reason she didn't have a criminal record right now was because the officer questioning her had taken pity on her inconsolable state.

The sound of approaching footsteps reached her ears, but Rose didn't bother to look up. She merely assumed it would be a random drunk or homeless individual looking for some sort of shelter from the harsh winter breeze, and unfortunately it seemed the best they would find around Bullworth town was the various alleyways. However, as she felt something nudge her leg she squeaked with fright, immediately glancing up at the individual with wide, tear filled eyes.

"What're- whoa! What the- What happened to _you_?" In front of her stood a rather alarmed looking Peanut, who had no doubt spotted the girl and wondered what she was doing sitting in an alleyway in the middle of the night. He looked rather unsure with himself, and it was obvious that he wasn't used to dealing with crying girls. Instead of replying, however, Rose began to sob harder, her head falling back into her hands. The mere thought of having to explain her ordeal made the tears flow at an even quicker pace. She'd really fucked up."H-Hey! W-wait, why're you cryin' more!?" Peanut sounded panicked at this point, and he gingerly crouched down next to the girl, awkwardly patting her on her shoulder in what he clearly hoped was a comforting manner.

"C'mon man...don't cry. I-it's okay..." He tried, looking round desperately, as though hoping for some sort of assistance. Rose sniffled and looked up at the uncomfortable Greaser, taking pity on his alarmed state. With a great sigh she attempted to stifle her sobs, placing a hand over her mouth as a small squeak escaped her lips. She just couldn't stop crying. "Y-you wanna talk about it?" Peanut asked. Rose shook her head, the embarrassment of the situation finally sinking in. Here she was, sat in the middle of a scummy alleyway, sobbing her heart out in the middle of the night to a boy she barely even knew. It was rather humiliating, especially considering the state she was in. No doubt she had mascara running down her cheeks.

"I-I'm fine," She sniffled, finally gathering the strength to get back to her feet. Peanut followed suit. "I think I'm just gonna head back to the school," She sighed, wiping away a few more tears which continued to fall from her now bloodshot eyes. She couldn't help but wonder what time it was, and also how she was going to sneak back into the school. No doubt it was hours after curfew now, and she didn't need to get into anymore trouble tonight. Taking a deep breath, she began on her way.

"Wait," Peanut called, hurrying after her, "Don't you think it's kinda dangerous walkin' back on your own? 'Least let me walk with you," He fell in step beside Rose as she nodded. Though she was embarrassed to be seen in the state she was in, she was grateful for the company. She wasn't fond of the dark.

"How come you're out so late?" She sniffed, quickly wiping away a few last stray tears which had managed to escape. She was well aware that the Greasers weren't exactly known for following school rules, but it had to be the early hours of the morning by now. What was Peanut doing wandering about at a time like this?

"I couldn't sleep so I snuck out for a walk," He replied, looking at the smaller girl curiously, "What about you? You gonna tell me why you were cryin'?"

Rose glanced at the boy beside her. It was pointless not telling him, as no doubt the whole school would know about her little trip to the asylum and police station by tomorrow afternoon. News spread incredibly fast at Bullworth. Nothing was ever kept secret.

"Gary convinced us to break into the asylum with him and-" She broke into a fresh set of sobs, and her body began to shake again, not only from the cold but from her fresh set of tears too. She took a deep breath before continuing, "A-and he left me and I got c-caught," She desperately tried to cease her tears, trying desperately to maintain some dignity. This was the second time she'd cried in front of Peanut, and she couldn't help but feel incredibly embarrassed and rather pathetic. Apparently taking note of the girls shivering, Peanut shrugged his leather jacket off, and gingerly placed it around her shoulders, all whilst looking incredibly awkward and embarrassed. No doubt he wasn't used to dealing with distraught girls.

Rose smiled sadly up at the Greaser, appreciating the kind gesture. The last person she had expected to find comfort in was Peanut. Sure, they'd sort of made up a few hours prior, but she hadn't expected him to actually show kindness towards her. It was strange the way things worked.

"The police are gonna be telling the Principle tomorrow, and he's gonna write to my parents," She finished, taking a large gulp of air. Peanut stayed silent as the two continued walking, the only sound being their footsteps. Rose gripped the jacked in her hands, pulling it tighter around her body. A million thoughts were running through her brain. _Had_ the boys actually managed to escape? They'd probably arrived back at their dorm hours ago, and she couldn't help but wonder if they were even worried about her disappearance. No doubt, if they'd been in the grounds at the time they would've seen her being escorted off the grounds and into the police car which had arrived shortly after her capture. She couldn't help but feel mad at Gary. She'd expressed her discomfort with him leaving her on her own, and he'd promised to come back for her. She sighed, feeling stupid for even trusting Gary.

"Why d'you even hang 'round with that psycho?" Came Peanut's quiet voice from beside her. Rose immediately knew whom he was referring to, and she couldn't help but wonder why she tagged along with Gary when invited.

"He scares me, I suppose," She replied, noting that they were nearing the bridge back to school. "I'm sure you've seen how he treats people who cross him. I thought if I just went along with what he wanted I'd be okay," In truth, Rose wanted nothing more than a simple, easy life, and if that meant allowing people to walk all over her then so be it. However, she was starting to question this belief. Allowing Gary to walk all over her and order her around had only led her to falling in some serious trouble. Maybe it was time she grew a backbone.

"Nothin' good comes out of hangin' round with that creep," Peanut replied, looking rather grim, "I've warned Johnny about him, we reckon he's plannin' somethin' big. He's been hangin' around the Autoshop a lot recently," Rose felt her stomach twist uncomfortably at these words. Kaden had stated that Gary seemed to be acting weirder than usual. Maybe she ought to warn the principle of Gary's erratic behaviour.

"What am I gonna do, Peanut?" She asked, feeling helpless at this point. She couldn't allow Gary to force her into tagging along on these stupid, rule-breaking adventures anymore, but she wasn't sure that her fear would allow her to stand up to the intimidating student.

"'Peanut'...huh...Crummy Peanut," The Greaser muttered bitterly, and Rose immediately felt a wave of guilt wash over her. She wasn't aware that the boy hated his nickname so much. She'd heard so many people refer to him as 'Peanut' that it had stuck. Before she could apologise, however, he answered her question, "I mean if you're worried about Gary I-I suppose I could see if Johnny and the boys are up for roughin' him up a little," He looked uncertain at this suggestion, as though he were being too forward or something, and whilst Rose appreciated his offer of help, she knew it was an incredibly bad idea. Beating up Gary would not stop him. Though she'd known him for a short while, she knew that once Gary had an idea, he would stick to it. As Kaden had said, they were Gary's cronies now, and he wasn't about to let them go without at least making their life a living hell.

She shook her head at his suggestion, before smiling up at the boy, "How come you're being so nice to me?" She asked. By now they had reached the school gates, and Rose felt herself appreciating the Greaser a lot more than she previously had. She had definitely judged him too harshly before. He was actually a very kind individual.

Peanut blushed upon hearing her question, and he shrugged awkwardly, his gaze glued to his feet. Clearly her enquiry had embarrassed him slightly, "I just don't like seein' girls cry is all, it ain't nice," He answered, shoving his hands into his pockets as he finally made eye contact with Rose. She smiled, before glancing in the gates to see that the coast was clear.

"Well, I suppose we'd better head in," She stated, and Peanut nodded. Before parting ways she turned to him again, feeling extremely grateful for the Greaser. She would've probably still been sat in that alleyway crying her heart out if it weren't for Peanut's presence.

"Thank you for walking me back, Larry," Rose smiled at the boy, noting the look of surprise on his face as she uttered his real name. Clearly, though he hated the nickname Peanut, it was very rare for someone to refer to him as Larry.

"S-see ya around," She heard Larry state, as she hurriedly walked towards the girls dorm. She hadn't noticed until now just how tired she was, and all she desired right now was the comforting warmth of her bed. She hoped she wouldn't wake Flora up when getting ready for bed. However, upon entering their shared dorm room, it seemed that the raven-haired girl was already fully awake, and she was not alone.

"ROSE!" Was all she heard, before she was immediately engulfed in one of the tightest hugs she had ever received. Apparently she had been right in thinking that the boys had arrived back at the school before her, but she hadn't thought that Kaden would actually wait up for her arrival.

"We've been so worried about you," Flora stated, joining Kaden in hugging the life out of Rose. Pulling away, she noticed that both Kaden and Flora looked extremely tired, and she felt a sudden surge of warmth towards her two friends.

"Rose you have no idea how sorry I am," Kaden stated, his eyes full of sorrow as he stared at the girl, "Gary said you'd backed out and headed back to the school, and then I saw you getting taken to that police car and then we almost got caught and-"

"Wait, back up a little," Rose demanded, her eyes narrowing dangerously. Had she heard Kaden right? "Gary said _what?_ "

Kaden tilted his head in confusion at his friends tone, and suddenly everything clicked. Had Gary lied? Had he tricked them into ditching Rose? What kind of friend would purposely ditch someone in the middle of an asylum?

"H-he said that you'd got scared and were heading back to the school. And then I saw you getting taken out the gates but I-I didn't realise, and then one of the guards spotted us so we made a run for it. What _happened?_ " Kaden felt almost as equally confused Rose did, and also incredibly angry. Gary was worse than he realised. He'd always known Gary was twisted and virtually had hardly any morals, but this was a new low.

"He told me he was gonna look for you guys and that he'd be right back, but he never came," Rose explained, walking over to her bed, where she flopped down heavily. Flora and Kaden followed suit. "I tried looking for you guys but I got caught. I was so scared," She finished, as Flora ran a hand through her hair comfortingly. Kaden had of course already informed the raven-haired of tonight's events as soon as he'd arrived back.

"That jerk," Kaden hissed, his face livid. "I can't believe he'd do such a thing. Jimmy's not gonna be too pleased with him either, but what's gonna happen to _you,_ though? How much trouble are you in?" Rose grimaced at this question. She didn't know the full extent of how much trouble she was in yet, she just knew that it was a _lot._ Her punishment was bound to severe, and the thought of it made her want to cry even more. Thankfully, Flora sensed this, and quickly changed the subject.

"Never mind all that! What is _this?_ " Flora questioned, prodding the arm of the leather jacket, a mischievous glint highly visible in her green eyes. The enquiry brought a soft smile onto Rose's face, and Flora couldn't help but sense that something was up. "Who's Prince Charming, huh?" Kaden sat up straight at Flora's words, his mood lightened. Rose, meanwhile, cursed internally, realising that she'd completely forgotten to give Peanut his jacket back.

"S-shut up!" Rose spluttered, her cheeks turning a light pink at not only Flora's words, but at that fact that she'd somehow managed to technically steal his jacket, "It's only Larry's. He found me crying and brought me back. It's kind of embarrassing actually. I was a right state,"

"Honey, you still are," Kaden teased, before he attempted to wipe away the mascara stains that now littered the brunette girls pale cheeks. "Also, who the fuck is Larry?"

Rose couldn't help but snort at this, "Peanut, you idiot,"

Kaden still looked confused, "That Greaser kid from art? But he's a jerk!"

At this Rose shook her head in disagreement. She almost found herself feeling offended for the Greaser boy. He'd been nothing but lovely to her tonight, and she already felt bad enough about her prior judgements about the boy. She didn't like that her friends were judging him too, mainly due to her previous conceptions.

"Look, guys, no offence but I'm really tired, I need sleep," She started, shrugging the jacket off as she got up from the bed. She walked across to the wardrobe, where she carefully hung the jacket up as though it were incredibly fragile and made of glass. Kaden took this as a hint to leave, and started saying his goodbyes to the two. Rose was incredibly distracted, however, a million thoughts running through her mind.

Why had Gary ditched her in the asylum grounds? What had caused him to lie to Kaden? Had she done something to offend him? How was she supposed to even act around him now? What if he expected her to tag along with the group still? Would she even have the nerve to stand up to him and say no? Something inside Rose was incredibly doubtful at this last question, and she couldn't help but wonder else Gary Smith had in store for her

* * *

 _ **Review plssss**_


	7. Feed Me

Sledgehammer

Chapter 7 – Feed Me

* * *

After her rather traumatising night, it was fair to say that Rose spent the majority of the morning in bed, absolutely refusing to attend her morning lesson, and whilst usually, Flora would have practically dragged her roommate out of bed and forced her into attending, on this occasion, she was fully understanding. The poor girl had been ditched in an asylum and then taken on a trip to the police station. She deserved a break, and Flora wasn't the only person who thought so. Kaden was also extremely worried for his friend.

It was lunch time, and Flora and Kaden found themselves sitting on the steps of one of the back entrances of the school, gazing towards the fountains and watching various students interact as they chatted, their main topic for today being last night's incident.

"What made you guys even go along with his stupid idea?" Flora questioned for what felt like the fiftieth time. She was of course referring to Gary and his twisted desire to break into Happy Volts Asylum. She just couldn't grasp the fact that he found it entertaining, and the fact that Rose and Kaden had agreed to tag along confused her even more. Sure, as Kaden had said, Gary was a scary individual, but the idea of breaking into a fully functional and occupied asylum seemed to conquer in terms of fear.

"Look, you don't know Gary," Kaden began, running a hand through his already tousled hair, "He's fucking twisted. I mean, before Jimmy came, sure he was weird, but he wasn't scary weird. Now he's just plain creepy. Refuse him and he'll target you for the rest of your life," An involuntary shiver ran down his spine at the thought. Although he was incredibly mad at Gary, and though he usually didn't have a problem with standing up to people, he found himself reluctant to do so with the scarred boy. Instead, he'd found himself desperately avoiding him for the majority of the morning, even waking up earlier so he could leave the dorm without bumping into the boy.

"But breaking into an asylum?" Flora countered. She counted herself extremely lucky to have not been subjected to the presence of Gary Smith so far, however, she also couldn't understand how one student could be so intimidating. Sure, Russell was pretty terrifying, but that was due to his immense size. Surely Gary couldn't be that bad?

"There's a rumour going round that he likes to torture people, and at first I thought it was just straight up bullshit, but now, I'm not so sure," Kaden stated darkly, glancing at Flora who was currently staring at him, her attention unwavering. As doubtful as she was, Flora had to admit that she was beginning to feel a slight wave of fear every time this Gary Smith boy was mentioned, and she hoped she would never have to meet him.

"D'you think he has it in for Rose?" She asked. Kaden shrugged.

"I'm not sure. To be honest, I think he's taken a liking to her," He started, his expression turning extremely sombre. He felt incredibly worried for his friend right now, and he was grateful that Flora was willing to listen to his concerns. No doubt she was incredibly worried for Rose too. "But it seems to be more than just a liking, I think he's growing obsessed, and he's twisted as fuck. He probably finds some sort of pleasure in tormenting poor Rose, if I'm honest," Kaden, though he didn't voice this out loud, noticed that Gary treated Rose pretty similarly to little Petey, and if that were anything to go by, it was obvious that the scarred boy was going to make Rose's school life miserable, unless someone put a stop to it, but who? Sure the more popular cliques weren't afraid of him, but it wasn't as though they would help. Maybe Jimmy would be willing to have a word with Gary? _He_ definitely wasn't afraid of the boy.

"I hope you're wrong," Flora replied rather sullenly, "The last thing she needs in this place is some sort of psycho stalker,"

Kaden nodded in agreement. He was about to reply, but the sound of the door opening behind them reached their ears, and before the two could move out the way for the newcomers to descend the steps, the sound of a familiar, disdainful voice reached their ears.

"Move out of the way, pauper, you're blocking our way."

Kaden rolled his eyes as he turned to face Gord, whom he hadn't seen since the Dodgeball incident yesterday. Thankfully, his nose hadn't bruised, but that didn't mean he'd forgiven the Prep boy. Beside Gord stood Tad, who was just as despicable and snobby. Flora merely stayed seated, looking up at the three boys nervously. The tension in the air had increased immensely, and she wondered if an argument was about to break out. She'd never spoken to these Preppie boys, but Kaden appeared to be fairly well acquainted with them.

"Y'know, if you tried asking nicely for once in your life-" Kaden started before immediately being cut off by Gord, who seemingly had not forgotten their little disagreement yesterday, and was still feeling incredibly offended.

"What are you doing sitting here, anyways? Hoping that some poor fool will think you're homeless and give you some cash?" Gord smirked as Tad laughed heartily at the smaller preps joke. Kaden merely raised his eyebrows in a judging manner, used to this sort of treatment. All the preps were the same, always mocking people for not being as rich them. It was a habit that had gotten old real quick.

"Oh, another poor people joke, how original," Kaden stated, throwing the two preppies a sarcastic grin. He did however, move to stand behind Flora, to allow the Preps to pass by. He would rather be rid of their presence as quickly as possible. Regardless of this movement though, it seemed as though the two boys were just getting started.

"What's the matter, poor boy? Getting defensive?" Tad spoke up, before turning his attention to Flora, who sat watching the fray open-mouthed. She clearly had no idea why the boys were getting so hostile. "Ah, look, if it isn't the new girl. She looks rather gormless, doesn't she?" He turned to Gord, talking about Flora as if she weren't even there. She immediately closed her mouth, quickly getting to her feet. She didn't have time for this shit.

"C'mon Kaden, let's just go," She muttered, grasping his hand and leading him down the last two steps, not wanting to be caught in any type of dispute. She just couldn't be bothered, she was over the rich boys. However, despite Flora and Kaden's retreat, it seemed as though Gord and Tad hadn't finished with their teasing yet.

"And just where do you common folk think you're going?" Tad questioned.

"Probably heading off to blow some random hobo," Gord stated, laughing nastily as both Kaden and Flora turned to look at the prep duo, "I suppose they have to earn a living somehow. Their parents are probably too _poor_ to send them money," It seemed as this though this last statement struck a nerve somewhere inside of Kaden, and before Flora could stop him he was squaring up to the brunette prep. Flora glanced at Tad, wandering if he was going to stop the two. Instead, he looked rather amused, as though the thought of the two beating the crap out of each other was funny.

"What's your fucking problem, man?" Kaden asked, finally decided that he'd had enough. The Dodgeball incident yesterday had annoyed him greatly, but now he was at boiling point. The mention of his parents was too much. No, they weren't poor, but they had their reasons for not bothering with their son. Or so they claimed. Unfortunately for Kaden, his parents were not supportive of his sexuality, to the point where he had to stay at Bullworth over the summer holidays because they couldn't stand having him in the house. Even the mere mention of his parents from the wrong person was enough to spark him off, and Gord appeared to realise he'd struck a nerve. He seemed to back down, perhaps realising that he'd gone too far.

"You're getting awfully uppity there, chap. You don't want to start something that you'll regret now, do you?" Gord asked. It was obvious that he was just attempting to save face in front of his prep friend, however, overall he seemed rather reluctant to fight Kaden. His words did nothing to appease Kaden, and instead antagonised him further, Flora noticed. It seemed as though Kaden had taken the words as more of a challenge rather than a truce. Flora was beginning to wonder if she should perhaps jump in. No doubt, judging by the angry expression on Kaden's face, a fight was brewing. She hadn't seen her friend fight before, but she knew he couldn't possible take on two preps. They were extremely skilled at boxing, and Kaden was outnumbered. She couldn't just stand by and watch her friend get beaten up. Nervously she stepped forward, her eyes trained on Tad, who looked as though he was attempting to square up to her. She knew this wouldn't end well, and could only hope that they wouldn't batter her face too harshly. She didn't fancy sporting a black eye for the next week or so.

"Hey! What d'you two chumps think you're doin', huh? You lookin' for trouble?"

Flora couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief at the sound of that familiar voice, and glancing to the right, she was glad to see none other than Johnny Vincent approaching, accompanied by Norton, whose height and large build was enough to intimidate the two preps to a great extent.

"Oh, it's _you._ " Gord stated, trying his best to sneer disdainfully at the new arrivals. Flora noticed, however, that his voice shook slightly, and that his stature was rather tense. He was afraid. "What do you Greaseball's want? Can't you see we're rather busy, here?" He eyed up Norton uneasily, apparently taken into account how much bigger the Greaser was, in both height and width.

"Don't be pissin' me off now, scumbag! Do you know who you're talkin' to, kid?" Johnny walked forward, cracking his knuckles threateningly. Gord appeared to cower slightly as the Greaser King towered over him, his gaze hard and cold. The small prep boy seemingly failed to notice that his friend, Tad, had disappeared a few seconds ago, apparently managing to run away unnoticed. He was alone now and cornered. "I suggest you scram before you get hurt," Johnny threatened. Gord spluttered in indignation, apparently not knowing when to back down. Kaden found the sight incredibly satisfying, glad to see that Gord was on the receiving end for once. It seemed as though he were finally getting a taste of his own medicine.

"Y-you can't tell me what to do! You touch me and my daddy will sue you!" The prep declared. Though he clearly meant it threateningly, it came out more pleadingly, as though he were attempting to give reasons for Johnny not to pound his face. It seemed to have no effect. Instead Johnny shoved Gord rather aggressively, causing the small brunette boy to stumble backs, falling rather heavily on his backside. Flora couldn't help but feel slightly sorry for Gord, despite his unpleasantness towards her and Kaden. He looked rather helpless as he struggled back to his feet, a look of obvious fear plastered on his face.

"D-Derby's going to be hearing about this, poor boy! You'll be sorry!" Gord gabbled out, sounding rather close to tears, before he quickly darted past the Greaser leader. Kaden felt incredibly amused as he watched the brunette practically sprint in the direction of Harrington House, throwing a scared look over his shoulder, obviously worried that the Greasers would follow. It seemed as though they had had their fun though, and instead they too watched the rather pathetic display.

"Yeah! You'd better run, kid! Next time you ain't gonna be so lucky!" Johnny called, chuckling as Norton nudged him in a joking manner, obviously pleased with how the Greaser King had handled the situation.

"Nice one, boss! Look at that twerp run," He stated, following Johnny's previous actions as he cracked his knuckles threateningly, "I might go keep an eye out for him. That kids just been askin' for a beatin'," Johnny nodded in approval, slapping Norton's arm in a friendly manner as the larger Greaser wandered off after Gord. Flora looked at Kaden awkwardly, hoping that he would get the hint and leave. It seemed as though Johnny was hovering, and she had a feeling he wanted to talk to her without the presence of Kaden. Thankfully, Kaden got the hint right away, and he smirked knowingly. Flora cringed internally at the obviousness of her friend, as he proceeded to raise his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

"I suppose I'll see you guys later," He started, slowly beginning to back away, a sly grin on his face, "Don't wanna be a cock block," This last statement was said in a much quieter tone, and thankfully, Johnny appeared to be too occupied with lighting a cigarette to hear. Kaden hurried off, smirking to himself and knowing full well that Flora would probably attempt to skin him alive later for his bluntness.

"You're such a shit," Flora muttered under her breath, glaring at the back of her friends head as he retreated.

"What was that?" Johnny asked, causing Flora to turn back immediately, a light blush covering her cheeks. She hoped the Greaser boy didn't think she was referring to _him._ She shook her head, smiling awkwardly. This seemed to amuse Johnny for some reason, and he chuckled, before taking a drag of his cigarette. "Y'know, you're kinda cute when you do that."

If Flora's cheeks had felt warm before it was nothing compared to how they were now. She felt as though her face was on fire, and she could only hope that her blush wasn't as visible as she believed it to be. Had Johnny Vincent just called her cute? Really? Was this actually happening?

"D-do what?" She asked nervously, cursing as she stuttered. She noticed that the two were gaining curious looks from nearby passing students, and she couldn't help but wonder what they were staring at. Was it that weird to see Johnny talking to a girl who wasn't Lola? At the thought of the Greasers girlfriend, Flora felt her stomach drop. She'd been so distracted by drama with the preps and the compliment from Johnny that she didn't realise how bad it would be if someone overheard him calling her cute. Sure, it was just a compliment, but it could easily be taken out of context, and the last thing she needed was to become enemies with this Lola girl. Vance had warned her about Johnny's promiscuous girlfriend, and Flora most definitely did not want to get on the bad side of her.

"When you go all shy and shit," He elaborated, cocking his head to the side as he proceeded to apparently scrutinise her reaction to his words. Flora tried her best to appear offhand, not wanting to appear too pleased with the compliment. He paused to drop his cigarette onto the concrete, squishing the object with his foot to ensure it was fully out.

"Look, kid," He began, suddenly appearing rather tense. It was obvious he was attempting to mask his sudden nervousness, as he shoved his hands in his pockets, standing tall. Flora couldn't help but wonder what he was about to say to her. "I hope this don't seem too forward or anythin' but how'd you feel about grabbin' some food?"

Flora gaped at the Greaser King, feeling rather taken aback by his question. Was he asking her on a date or had she completely misunderstood the question?

"Like...now?"

Johnny began to look rather uncertain, seemingly taken Flora's display of surprise as a sign that she was uninterested and appalled at the suggestion. "Y-yeah, unless you don't want to of course...if you ain't feelin' up for it then...uh...that's cool," Flora couldn't help but smile up at the sheepish boy in front of her. It was a rather weird thing, witnessing the Greaser King suddenly become all uncertain and awkward. It was quite endearing actually. She shook her head quickly, disagreeing with his assumptions.

"No, no. I'd like that, it's just...what about Lola?" She stated, finally voicing the reason for her reluctance. How would Lola react if she found out her boyfriend was taking another girl out for food? Flora wasn't entirely sure if it was a date or not, but regardless of the circumstances, any woman would be suspicious of the situation. Johnny, however, did not seem to share these concerns, and instead he merely shrugged, apparently unaware of how unusual it would look to the other students if they noticed him taking a girl other than his girlfriend for food.

"We're only goin' for food, Lola ain't gonna mind," He replied. Flora seriously doubted this, judging by the look Lola had been throwing her way a few days ago when Flora had been speaking to Johnny by the school fountain. Still, Flora wasn't about to turn the boy down. It obviously wasn't intended to be a date judging by his previous words, so what was the issue? Sure Lola might not be too happy about it, but Flora found herself not really caring. The concept of spending quality time out of school with the Greaser King was far too tempting to turn down.

"Okay, I'm cool with that. It'll be nice to eat something that doesn't look like vomit for once," Flora stated, wrinkling nose as she thought back to the casserole Edna had served two days prior. She wasn't sure what it had contained, but it had been enough to put her off casserole for life. Johnny snorted at this.

"Anythin' you cravin' in particular, kid?" Johnny asked, as the two began to make their way around the building, heading in the direction of the school gates. Flora didn't have to think of an answer, she knew immediately what she craved.

"Nuggets."

* * *

"What is it with you chicks and your obsession with nuggets?"

Johnny watched in an amused manner as Flora happily popped the last nugget neatly into her mouth, a look of pure satisfaction on her face as she did so. She shrugged, glancing round the fast food restaurant. It was rather quiet, other than a few students who sat at nearby tables, staring at the two curiously, clearly wondering why the Greaser King was hanging round with the new girl. He'd been nice enough to pay for her food, which Flora found rather sweet, though unnecessary considering this wasn't supposed to be a date. Still, she wasn't about to complain.

"Nuggets are the way to a girl's heart, all men should know this," Flora stated, wiping her hands on a napkin. Johnny had finished his food way before Flora, who was a rather slow eater, especially now with the handsome boy sat across from her. She'd been extra careful not to slop or cause a mess, trying her best to still appear ladylike.

"Seems like I'm gonna have to get you them more often then, huh?" Johnny smirked from across the table, and Flora desperately attempted to avoid eye contact at this. Again, her face felt as though it was on fire, and she found herself feeling incredibly confused. The boy had a girlfriend, and she'd assumed that this wasn't a date, so why was he seemingly flirting? Apparently Johnny noticed Flora's sudden wave of embarrassment, and thankfully he changed the topic of conversation, opting for a more relaxed subject. "So I hear you fucked up Vance's hand pretty badly in Shop the other day,"

Flora smiled sheepishly at this, remembering the incident in which she'd accidentally jammed the small Greaser boys hand in the chain of the bike. "He told you about that, huh?"

"I mean the kids hand was bruised to fuck," Johnny laughed, resting his arms on the table as he leaned forward slightly, his eyes quickly scanning the area before coming to a rest on the girl in front of him. "It was kinda hard not to notice. Vance ain't too pleased, he asked me not to skip Shop again. Says he wants to avoid gettin' assaulted with a wrench," His grin broadened as Flora laughed. Of course Vance had told Johnny. The red-head had probably given his leader a full detailed account on how Flora had almost managed to assault him numerous times throughout that particular lesson.

"I wasn't that bad," She attempted to reason, immediately being cut off by Johnny who scoffed.

"Yeah, yeah. I still remember you stabbin' me with that screwdriver in our first lesson," He countered. Flora hung her head in mock shame. Though it had been an incredibly embarrassing incident at the time, she couldn't help but laugh. The way the Johnny had attempted to act like it hadn't hurt, and the proceeded to wince and cradle his hand like a baby when he thought she wasn't looking had been rather funny to witness.

"I thought we'd established that I was useless with bikes?" Flora looked at Johnny, a small smile on her face as she thought back to their first lesson, remembering one promise in particular, "Hey, I thought you'd said that you were gonna teach me to ride a bike," Johnny's eyes widened slightly, as he looked at the girl in disbelief.

"Shit, I keep forgettin' you can't ride a bike," He smirked at Flora, his brown eyes boring into hers as he spoke. She noticed that his eyes were always rather intense. Not in a bad way, of course, but in a way that caused her to have a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach. This boy was just far too attractive. "You should come hang at the clubhouse sometime, there's a bike park nearby. I could take you if you wanted,"

"Clubhouse?" Flora asked. Did all the cliques have their own little hangouts outside of school or something?

"Yeah, the Blue Balls Pool Hall," Johnny elaborated. He paused as Flora suddenly spluttered in surprise. No way. Was that the actual name of the place? Surely that wasn't allowed. Not in an old fashioned town like this.

" _Blue Balls?_ Really? That's _actually_ what it's called?"

Johnny merely rolled his eyes in amusement at the girl's reaction. "Real mature, kid. Anyways, like I was sayin' you oughta' come hang sometime, I'm sure my boys won't mind. We'll give you a game of pool, although don't be expectin' us to go easy on you," Flora couldn't help but feel flattered at this invitation. She doubted it was one Johnny extended regularly. The Greasers seemed to be a real exclusive clique due to their intimidating nature, and she doubted that it was easy to get in their good books. However, there was one problem.

"I don't know how to play pool," Flora stated, once again feeling rather sheepish. Surely Johnny would think she was an imbecile by now, considering how clueless she was when it came to his interests and hobbies. She hoped it wouldn't put him off. Thankfully, however, it seemed to have the opposite effect.

"Looks like I'm gonna have to teach you about pool as well as bikes then, huh?" He asked, his eyes full of warmth. Apparently it seemed that her cluelessness amused him rather than annoyed him, which Flora was grateful for. She liked the Greaser King, and if it weren't for the fact that he had a girlfriend she would've been trying her best to flirt with him right now. Again, at the thought of Lola, her eyes glanced at the tables that contained a small number of Bullworth students nearby. Though they weren't staring at the Greaser King and the new girl anymore, their eyes would dart to the duo every now and then, obviously still curious. Flora wondered if one of these students would go and tattle to Lola about their little trip to the fast food joint.

"A-are you sure Lola isn't gonna mind about this?" Flora questioned, looking at Johnny in a rather apprehensive manner. She didn't want to gain the reputation of being a boyfriend stealer. "Like, I'm not gonna lie but if I were her I wouldn't be too pleased..."

Johnny sighed heavily, his mood suddenly darkening. Flora almost regretted bringing the topic up. "It doesn't matter. She's probably off with one of those rich kids right now." He replied, casting a dark glance at the students nearby. Flora couldn't help but feel shocked at this. Sure, Vance had said she was promiscuous and slept around a lot, but the fact that Johnny knew and yet he still decided to stay with her was mind blowing. She just couldn't understand it.

"S-surely you can't be okay with that?" She asked, her eyes narrowed in confusion slightly. Johnny shrugged.

"I used to hate it, but now, I ain't that bothered. I've been thinkin' of breakin' it off with her for a while now," He replied in an offhand voice, as though they were merely having a conversation about the weather. Flora didn't understand how he could be so casual about this. "The boys ain't too keen on her, and she's been nothin' but trouble recently," He paused, looking at Flora, his expression now rather serious.

"O-oh...that kinda sucks," Flora replied, not really knowing how to reply. It was a touchy subject, one that she didn't wish to delve in. It did, however, make her feel slightly less guilty about hanging around with the Greaser leader. If anything, Lola deserved it.

"Enough about her though," Johnny stated, finally standing up. Flora followed suit. "I'll walk you back to your dorm. Last period is over now so you shouldn't get busted for skippin',"

Flora nodded, feeling disappointed that their little food date was over. She'd enjoyed being in Johnny's company, he was a lot less serious than she thought he would be. She did, however, regret bringing up the Lola thing. Sure, it had given her insight on the clearly rocky relationship between the two, but the dampening of Johnny's mood had definitely contributed to the date being cut short. Maybe she shouldn't have mentioned it? Still, at least it seemed as though if Lola found out about their little outing, she wouldn't be cross with Flora. Or at least Flora hoped she wouldn't be.

Following Johnny out of the building, she glanced back, noting the stares the other students were giving her now that the Greaser King had his back turned. It was obvious that their little 'date' was not going to be kept secret.


	8. Boys, Boys, Boys

Sledgehammer

Chapter 8 – Boys, Boys, Boys

* * *

Rose had surprisingly been incorrect in guessing that she would be subjected to a month's worth of detentions from Dr. Crabblesnitch once he was informed of the asylum incident. Though she had been forced to listen a rather lengthy lecture on behaviour and expectations and how she had brought shame on the school, the principle had surprisingly let her off with a mere warning, and Rose couldn't help but suspect that her father had perhaps paid Crabblesnitch money in order to restrain him from punishing his daughter too harshly. Though she was grateful for this, especially considering how scary the detention prefect was, she couldn't help but worry. No doubt her father was currently furious at her, and had only bribed the principle in an attempt to protect the family's reputation amongst his peers, all who were of a high social class. Rose had attempted to confide in Pinky, who she hoped would be able to sympathise due to her similar family life, however, her concerns were not taken seriously. Instead, Pinky believed she was being rather stupid, actually.

"I don't understand why you're so _worried._ My daddy pays Crabblesnitch off all the time, its normal!" Pinky declared as the two sat on the edge of the fountain between the Autoshop and Harrington House. It had been cleared out for once, and thankfully no longer had an aroma of vomit, unlike the cafeteria. It was currently lunch time, and Rose and Pinky had immediately retreated outdoors upon smelling the suspicious scent that was that escaping from the kitchens. "Besides, that detention prefect is creepy, just be glad you don't have to go near him," Rose merely sighed heavily in reply to this. Pinky was missing the point completely.

"It's not that. Like I'm glad I didn't get detention, but how's my dad gonna react when he next sees me? I broke into an _asylum._ " Rose stated. What made the situation even worse was the fact that back home she was a goody-two-shoes. Never before had she been in trouble before. Generally, she'd always been extremely well-behaved, and so she was sure that the shock of her getting into trouble would only add to her father's anger. No doubt she would be given the silent treatment when she next saw him.

Pinky merely huffed in reply. She'd made her opinion on the situation very well known already. "Well, it's your own fault for hanging round with that weird boy," She began, giving Rose a scolding look, "Y'know, I heard he likes to _torture_ people. That boy is so dangerous, your daddy will never approve- oh! Hi there!" She paused to wave at someone, and glancing round, Rose noticed Gord making his way over to the two. She'd heard all about this prep boy from Kaden, of course, and she eyed him uneasily, wondering if he was going to play nice. Did he know Rose was Kaden's friend?

"Ah, hello there! If it isn't _just_ the girl I was looking for," Gord stated, his eyes trained directly upon Rose. She blinked in surprise as she realised he was actually referring to her. Why on earth was he looking for her? They were barely even acquaintances, and ever since her first encounter with him, where she'd been bombarded with questions in regards to how genuine her Aquaberry garments were, she'd pretty much steered clear of the prep boy. What could he possibly want with her? Apparently Pinky was rather surprised at his sudden desire to speak to Rose too.

"Huh? Her?" She questioned, looking rather taken aback.

"Yes. Now be a dear, Pinky, and allow me to have a quick chat with our little... _friend_ here," Gord stated. A large, and rather fake smile was now plastered on his face as he stared down at Rose, and instantly she knew he was not here to have a friendly chit chat as he'd stated. No, he was here for a favour of some sort, and Rose racked her brain in an attempt to figure out what the prep boy could possibly want from her.

Pinky, apparently feeling rather offended at Gord's dismissal, let out a loud huff before she haughtily stood up, storming off towards Harrington House. She was obviously very displeased at being left out. Gord quickly took her seat, the fake smile still visible on his face.

"Now, let's not bother with any silly small talk, I'm sure you know why I'm here, Rosalie" Gord started, glancing down at his impeccable nails in a bored manner, his facial expression now neutral, "You're friends with that Kaden chap, yes?"

Rose merely nodded in reply, as she eyed the prep boy warily. She had no idea why he wanted to chat to her about Kaden for, she thought the two hated each other. It would be an understatement to say she was feeling incredibly confused right now, as well as extremely alert, as her protectiveness of her friend grew.

"What's he like?"

Rose blinked in surprise. "W-what's he like?" She repeated Gord's question, her confusion growing further. She had no idea what was going on right now, nor had she expected such a simple enquiry to fall from the preps lips. What did he mean exactly?

Gord rolled his eyes at her slowness, " _Yes,_ do try to keep up," He sighed impatiently, still looking rather bored with the current conversation, despite the fact that the whole situation had been implemented by himself, "What is he like? His interests, hobbies, that sort of rubbish," Gord elaborated. Though his posture was still rather lazy, he had a rather expectant look in his eyes, and it was clear that Rose now had his upmost attention. Why did he want to know all this?

"Look, I don't really get why you're asking me thi-" Rose started, before stopping her sentence suddenly. She stared hard at Gord, whose eyes widened slightly, as though he feared that she had suddenly figured out his interest in Kaden. It was at that moment when everything suddenly clicked in her brain, and a sly smile slowly worked its way onto her face. "Hang on...you like him! You like Kaden! _That's_ why you're so mean to him! That whole 'guys are mean to people they like' thing! It's just to get him to notice you!" Rose felt rather pleased with herself at this revelation, as she looked at the prep boy triumphantly, ignoring his desperate attempts to shush her. This whole time he hadn't been intentionally bullying Kaden. It was quite the opposite. Gord had a small, developing crush on the boy, he just clearly didn't know how to approach the matter, and took to bothering and tormenting the other boy instead.

Gord scoffed, trying his best to not appear embarrassed at the fact that Rose had cottoned on so quickly, "I do not _like_ him! I'm just...interested is all. Of course, daddy would never approve of this so you need to keep quiet, understand? If the other chaps find out about this I'll never live it down. Paupers are off limits,"

Rose nodded, understanding that the other preps would most definitely mock Gord for the rest of the school year if they found about his interest in Kaden. She bit her lip, pondering how she could help. She supposed if Gord could clean up his act and stop being so horrible and snobbish all the time, he might actually be a nice match for Kaden. "I could have a word with Kaden, if you like?"

Gord eyed Rose suspiciously upon hearing her suggestion, seemingly feeling rather hesitant, "What do you mean?"

Rose shrugged casually, her eyes falling upon Algie, who had a 'kick me' sign taped upon his back. It wasn't long before he was bombarded by a group of students, all following the instructions of the clumsily scrawled note. "I mean I could just try and talk to him, maybe convince him to be more open to getting to know you, because no offence, but right now he pretty much hates you," Gord frowned at these words, his eyes also trained upon Algie, who was now lying on the cold concrete ground wailing for his mother, whilst a few of the bullies stood around the poor boy, mocking his unceasing cries. This school really was the worst.

"I suppose you can have a word with him, if you feel like it'll help," Gord agreed, sighing in a rather defeated manner. "Just please ensure that you're subtle about it, I can't have any of the riff raff around here knowing about it,"

Rose nodded in reply.

"Don't worry about it, subtle is my middle name,"

* * *

"GORD LIKES YOU AND WANTS TO HAVE YOUR BABIES!"

Kaden jumped violently as a loud voice suddenly reached his ears, and before he knew it, a very triumphant and excited looking Rose was sat right next to him, staring at him in an expectant manner. He quickly glanced around the surrounding area of the boy's dorm, cringing internally as he noticed the number of curious looks they were receiving from nearby students. He'd only come outside for a little bit of fresh air, and yet here he sat, embarrassed and mortified by the loud proclamation that had just escaped his friend's mouth.

"What the _fuck_?" Was all the startled boy could ask, as he stared at his smug looking best friend. The words 'Gord likes you and wants to have your babies' were the last thing he ever expected to hear, and he couldn't help but wonder if his friend was intoxicated or something of the sort. Rose just couldn't be serious right now.

"He likes you! That's why he's been acting so horrible towards you! So that you'd notice him!" Rose elaborated, her eyes lit with excitement. Kaden merely stared at his friend, his facial expression still showing signs of extreme confusion. Gord liked him? Was this some sort of joke?

"Who the fuck is mean to their crush anymore? What are we? _Five_?" He snorted, shaking his head in disbelief. He did not feel as optimistic about this news as Rose clearly did. In fact, Kaden was finding it rather hard to believe. This was obviously some sort of prank. "Who told you this, anyways?" He questioned suspiciously, determined to try and catch his friend out. If it was indeed a prank, he failed to see the funny side of it.

"Gord did." Rose replied happily, glancing round the front yard of the boy's dorm, her eyes falling upon none other than Peanut, who was sat on the steps leading into the dorm. His eyes had seemingly been trained on her for a while, but he quickly looked away sheepishly upon being caught staring. Rose cleared her throat awkwardly, before diverting her attention back to Kaden. "He asked to have a chat with me and he started asking about you, like your hobbies and interest and stuff. So I kinda figured he liked you and when I asked him about it he said he was interested," She looked at Kaden expectantly. Kaden, however, was at a loss for words. What did she expect him to do with this information? Gord had harassed him mercilessly over the past few weeks since their little introduction during Kaden's detention. Sure, it might have been to attract Kaden's attention, but that didn't mean it was okay. He'd almost broken Kaden's nose! How was that acceptable behaviour?

"Why are you telling me this?"

Rose bit her lip sheepishly as she looked up at her rather unimpressed looking friend, "I offered to try and chat to you about it. Y'know, convince you to be more open to getting to know him,"

At these words, Kaden groaned heavily, dropping his head into his hands. So she was trying to set him up...with Gord. The guy who had been nothing but bothersome for the past few weeks. Kaden supposed physically, Gord wasn't so bad. He was cute. But personality wise, he couldn't say the same. Gord was snobbish, he was judgemental and most importantly he was a pain in the ass. Kaden just couldn't see how Rose believed the two would be a good match. After all, the two had almost come to blows the other day, if it weren't for Johnny Vincent scaring the prep boy off.

Rose seemed to sense her friends reluctance in regards to giving Gord a chance. "C'mon, Kaden! Please? Just give him a chance, get to know him! Sure he's a bit of a jerk but you never know, deep down he could be nice!" She pleaded. Sure, she wasn't exactly keen on Gord, but she could totally picture the two together. Besides, though it was a selfish reason to want the two to get to know each other, she had a feeling Gord wouldn't be too pleased if Kaden rejected her encouragement, and she did not want the prep boy to be on her case. "All you have to do is try talking to him a little more? And if he does turn out to be a jerk I'll buy you some nuggets as an apology...okay?"

Kaden let a small smile grace his lips at these words, and he looked at his friend fondly, "I do love nuggets...okay...I suppose I could _try_ to be a little open and nicer with him. I'm gonna have to somehow get him on his own though...without the other preps noticing," Rose punched the air in triumph, feeling rather pleased with her match making skills.

"Okay, so how are you gonna get him alone? You can't just walk into Harrington House, the preps will jump instantly," She pointed out, turning serious. They needed to come up with a plan, though it appeared that Kaden already had one in mind. He smirked slyly at her, his eyes trained on the prefect who had just wandered into the vicinity, his eyes on the lookout for any sign of trouble. If he was going to try and get to know Gord, he would rather get it over with. Half of Kaden just wanted to prove Rose wrong, to show her that he and Gord would not be able to even have one conversation with each other before it turning into some sort of insult match. However, a very small part of Kaden was actually curious as to whether Gord did actually like him, and he wondered if he would see a change in the prep boy.

"I have an idea," He stated getting to his feet. Rose followed suit. "Just go along with it, okay?" Kaden muttered as he turned to face Rose. Before she could even react to these words, she felt herself being roughly shoved backwards by her friend. She stared at him in shock, her mind running rather slow, before she realised that this was part of the plan, but where was he going with this? How would shoving his friend get him alone time with Gord? It wasn't until her eyes fell upon the nearby prefect did Rose realise what Kaden was about to do. He was going to try and get detention, and hope that they assigned him to the Harrington House garden again, which, no doubt, would be where Gord was hanging out.

"Ow!" She whined in an exaggerated manner, in an attempt to gain the oblivious prefects attention. Kaden tried to hold back a smirk at his friends acting, as he shoved her again, this time harder.

"What? You gonna cry!?" He taunted loudly, as once again Rose let out an exaggerated whimper of pain. His jeers finally caught the attention of the prefect, who turned just in time to witness Kaden shove Rose once more. Immediately the prefect sprung into action, quickly making his way over to the pair. Students were punished harshly in regards to the harassment or hitting of girls, and no doubt Kaden would be granted with a detention almost immediately.

"What do you think you're doing!? Stop that immediately!" The prefect grasped Kaden by the back of his collar, shaking him in a rather aggressive manner. "Detention, Murphy! You're coming with me!" At this Kaden grinned triumphantly, as the prefect began to drag him away. Gord had better have been telling the truth when he said that he wanted to get to know the boy, otherwise the extreme efforts that Kaden had went to in order to gain a private chat would have all been in vain. There was also the case of whether or not Gord was actually hovering around Harrington House at this precise moment. Kaden was almost certain that it was his usual hangout, and he could only hope the Prep boy would be there.

Rose merely grinned as she watched her friend being dragged off, praying for him that this plan wasn't all in vain, and that he would be assigned to the garden of Harrington House to serve his detention. Maybe she ought to go see if she could find Gord too? Just to ensure that the Prep boy was at the same location as Kaden when the time came? At this, Rose nodded to herself in determination, before deciding to search for Gord to inform him of this newly arisen opportunity to chat to Kaden without arising any suspicion. However, she had barely taken five steps when she was stopped by a rather concerned voice.

"You okay there? Looked like that jerk was givin' you a rough time," Rose turned to face Peanut in a startled manner, as he stood towering over her. She hadn't heard him approaching, and the concern that he appeared to be showing surprised her greatly.

"Wha-? Oh, no, no, that was all planned," Rose stated, quickly defending her friend, "He wanted to get a detention, that's all," She nodded in a reassuring manner, throwing the greaser a smile as though to seal the statement. She couldn't help but feel flattered at the concern, however, glad that someone appeared to be watching her back here at Bullworth.

"Who the fuck wants to get a detention?" Peanut stated, looking extremely confused. Rose grimaced slightly, understanding his point entirely, but she couldn't exactly explain that Kaden had gotten detention in order to attempt to have a private chat with one of the prep boys. Though she and Peanut were no longer on bad terms anymore, she didn't know how trustworthy he was. She doubted Kaden would be happy if Gord's interest in him was spread around the school due to Rose being unable to keep her mouth shut. No, it was best if she changed the subject. Luckily for her, she had a new conversational topic at the ready.

"Oh! I almost forgot! You left your jacket with me the other night," Rose stated, noting how odd Peanut actually looked without it on. He almost looked like an ordinary student without his leather jacket. "Maybe you should swing by the dorm later on?"

Peanut nodded, and Rose noted he looked rather relieved, "Sure, the boys have been houndin' me about why I haven't been wearin' it. Figured they wouldn't be happy if they knew I'd given it to some preppy broad," Rose blinked at those last few words, feeling slightly taken aback. She had to admit, it stung a little. She knew that the clique rivalries were quite intense at Bullworth, but she hated being lumped with those other preps, and being referred to as a broad wasn't exactly the most flattering term. Still, she pushed back her feelings and instead nodded, pretending to be understanding of the greaser.

"T-that's fine," She smiled in a strained manner, surprised at how hurt she felt at the boy's words. She needed to leave and clear her head before her emotions began to show. "Erm...I have some things to do so I'm just gonna leave..." She trailed off uncertainly.

Peanut seemed completely unaware of her sudden change in mood, and instead said a rather cheery goodbye, before heading back towards the boy's dorm, leaving Rose to her thoughts. Was it always going to be like this at Bullworth? Constantly being compared to those other preps? She wasn't sure she liked the idea of that, but she hated the idea of continuously having to prove herself different from the other rich kids of Bullworth. Still, she didn't have time to dwell on this for too long. She needed to 'wingman' for Kaden, and ensure Gord was aware of the newly arisen opportunity to chat with Kaden... _privately._

* * *

It seemed as though Kaden's plan to chat with Gord had failed dramatically. Though he had been granted with a detention, it hadn't been at Harrington House. Instead, Kaden had been subjected to cutting the grass of the football field. Not only had his plan failed, he'd been forced to serve a pointless detention, whilst the prefect detention barked insults at him. By the time he'd finished mowing the football field, he felt rather miserable, not to mention stupid. Why had he done this? Before today he'd hated Gord, and if he was honest with himself, Kaden still held a large amount of dislike for the prep boy. Though the idea of Gord being interested in him was intriguing, it definitely wasn't worth getting a detention for. Kaden couldn't help but snort at his actions as he made his way up to the steps of the football field, feeling rather done with himself. This whole thing was just stupid.

"I was told you'd be here,"

Kaden jumped as a voice rang out from above him, and glancing up the small stone staircase, he spotted Gord leering down at him. He couldn't help but feel slightly apprehensive at the sight of the prep boy, and cautiously he made his way up the stairs.

"What do you want, Gord?" Kaden questioned, as he finally stood in front of the other boy. He noted that he felt rather nervous, and didn't quite know how to act. He'd never felt this awkward in a long time.

"I see you've spoken to your little friend already, yes?" Gord asked, ignoring Kaden's question. Immediately Kaden knew he was referring to Rose, and he noticed that the prep boy also looked rather apprehensive. Kaden nodded in reply, his eyes trained closely on the boy stood in front of him. "Hmm, she told me you would be here, seems you have a knack for getting in trouble. Still, I suppose we all like a bad boy, don't we?" Gord smirked at Kaden, seemingly gaining his usual confident composure back. Kaden couldn't help but roll his eyes at this, desperately trying to keep up a cool facade. It would be unwise to let his guard down, especially since he didn't know if Gord was genuine or not. He didn't trust preps.

"Anyways, enough chit chat...you already know my intentions, I assume?" Gord continued, glancing round quickly as though to ensure no one was eavesdropping on their conversation. Kaden did the same. The idea of someone overhearing their conversation and telling the rest of the school was not one he liked the sound of.

"Rose told me you were interested in me," Kaden confirmed, feeling his cheeks heat up slightly. He still couldn't quite believe that he'd agreed to give Gord a chance and be more open with the boy. There was a lot to lose if all of this went wrong, and he was pretty certain that Gord would never be likable. The prep boy just seemed to know how to push all of his buttons.

"Yes, well, this whole thing would be quite scandalous if anybody found out, so how would like to do a little bit of shopping with me on Thursday when everyone else is in class?" Gord offered, with his usual smirk. Again he glanced round, ensuring the area was empty and that they weren't gaining any suspicious looks from nearby jocks. The two remained unnoticed, however, Kaden didn't care. The suspicion that had arisen from Gord's offer quenched any other worry that he may have had. Had Gord actually asked him on a date?

"This is a trick, isn't it?" Kaden glared at the prep boy, his feelings of apprehension and mistrust only intensifying further. To his surprise, Gord shook his head in a rather earnest manner.

"No, no. I'm quite serious. Look, how about you go and consider my offer, and if you decide to take it up, come and meet me on the pier after lunch on Thursday, hmm?" Gord stated, clasping his hands together. Kaden's suspicions did not lift. He knew that this was obviously some sort of prank. As soon as he stepped foot on that pier on Thursday he'd probably be jumped by a large group of preps, or bombarded with eggs and stink bombs. Still, he couldn't help but feel that maybe Gord was actually telling the truth, and that this was indeed a serious offer. Though Gord wore his usual smirk, his eyes were earnest and friendly. Kaden felt reluctant to let his guard down just yet, however, and instead he shoved his hands into his pockets, nodding curtly in agreement to Gord's offer.

"Right...I'll think about it," He agreed, before deciding that maybe it was best he headed back to the dorm before they gained any unwanted attention from the jocks. Their continuous presence would surely be noted if they didn't despatch soon. He began to retreat, throwing Gord one last hesitant look.

"Oh, and don't mention this to anyone! I can't have the chaps know I'm slumming it with a poor boy!" Gord stated. Kaden merely rolled his eyes at the prep boy. To his surprise, instead of feeling offended, Kaden couldn't help but smirk, feeling rather amused. He couldn't help but wonder what would be in store for him on Thursday should he choose to turn up. What would happen if Gord was genuine? Sure, there was the risk of it all being a prank, but Kaden found himself feeling quite open towards the meet up with Gord. Maybe it would be fun? Still, he wasn't going to make his decision just yet. No, he needed to weigh his options before making any risks.

Making his way past the schools fountain, Kaden couldn't help but chuckle to himself in amusement. Who would've thought that the flamboyant and snobbish Gord would ever be interested in a pauper like himself?

* * *

Steaming hot water cascaded through her raven locks and down her back, all the stresses and tension gained from the chaos that often surrounded Bullworth washing down the drain, leaving Flora feeling rather at ease and relaxed for once. She felt as though she was fitting into Bullworth quite nicely. She had two great friends, she was part of the cheerleading squad, and her grades were rather high regardless of the poor teaching staff available at the school. Still, despite all this, she couldn't help but shake the feeling that she wasn't alone, as though someone was watching her. When she'd entered the showers of the girl's dorm, the room had been empty. Most of the girls were either outside chatting with friends or in their rooms making their way through large piles of homework. Yet she was certain that something was amiss. The uneasiness caused her to cut her shower short, and she gingerly stepped out from behind the curtain, her eyes scanning the room carefully.

It was the same as when she had entered. Empty. At least the shower area was. However, as her eyes strayed over to the toilet cubicles that were located within the other half of the bathroom, she found herself feeling pretty unsure. Was she being silly? Maybe one of the girls had just popped in to use one of the facilities? Still, Flora felt rather spooked, and she quickly grasped her pink fluffy towel, wrapping it carefully around her body. It wasn't until she began to head towards the exit of the bathroom, her feet pattering gently against the tile did the unknown presence finally reveal itself. She'd barely taken two steps when one of the cubicle doors suddenly opened, and out stepped none other than the greaser kings girlfriend, Lola. Flora could tell that this wasn't going to be good.

"Finally! I've got a bone to pick with you," She stated, her voice sharp, as she sauntered over to Flora. Lola clearly had no concept of personal space, as she didn't stop until she was stood chest to chest with the shorter girl. Flora clutched her towel nervously, wondering what was about to happen.

"H-have you been hiding in there the entire time!?" She demanded, feeling extremely startled. She couldn't help but feel slightly violated, wondering if Lola had indeed been watching her throughout the duration of her time in the bathroom. Sure, she'd been hidden behind a shower curtain, but it was still incredibly creepy.

"Listen, scuzz, I've been seeing you around a lot, and I heard about your little 'date' with Johnny," Lola started, as she stared coldly into Flora's eyes, all traces of the nice, sweet girl she attempted to portray to the male students of Bullworth gone, "I've got a lot of guys around here who would do _anything_ to please me, and if you don't watch your back I'm sure they'd be more than happy to get their hands dirty for me," Flora blinked in shock at this statement, still not being able to quite comprehend the situation.

"Are you...are you _threatening_ me?"

Lola merely smirked in reply, crossing her arms over her chest. "That depends on you. If you stop hanging around my prince I might let it slide," She eyed Flora in a judgemental manner, her smirk only growing wider. "What makes you think he'd be interested in you over me, anyways? You're nothing special. You're just a cheap slut who's so desperate for a guy to pay attention to you that you'd be willing to steal someone else's man!" Flora frowned at this, feeling pretty offended.

"Me? A cheap slut? That's rich coming from the school's bike!" She snapped back, feeling a large amount of satisfaction as Lola's smirk disappeared almost instantly. "Rumours travel pretty fast here, Lola. So don't try and act like you're any better than me," It seemed that these words naturally did nothing to appease the greaser girl, who's usually pretty face had now been turned into an ugly snarl. She uncrossed her arms, letting them fall to her sides, her fists balled. For a second Flora thought that she was going to punch her.

"Look, I've tried to be nice-"

Flora snorted in disbelief, " _That_ was you being nice?"

Lola ignored the interruption and continued, "I've tried to be nice but honey, you've made a big mistake. I can do whatever I want around here, you'd better watch your back from now on,"

"Wow, if it isn't the school slut. How many guys have you fucked today then, Lola?" Flora turned in surprise as a new voice joined the fray. The voice belonged to none other than Mandy, who had clearly been eavesdropping outside the door for quite some time. Flora couldn't help but feel grateful at the head cheerleader's presence.

"Oh butt out, Mandy! This has nothing to do with you!" Lola snapped, her fiery gaze now focused on the new arrival. Flora was finally able to take a few steps back away from the greaser girl, pleased that she now no longer had anyone invading her personal space. It had been getting rather intense. "Just be glad your little friend was here to save your ass," She threw a nasty look at Flora, before deciding that she was clearly outnumbered. Flora couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as Lola sassily sauntered out of the bathroom, realising that the conversation was going nowhere, and that her warnings were not being heeded.

"That was intense," Flora stated, turning to face Mandy, who was glaring in the direction that Lola had disappeared, "I'm glad you arrived when you did,"

Mandy nodded, crossing her arms over her chest as she turned to Flora, "She's a total bitch! Honestly, I don't get what Johnny sees in her," She started, leaning against the tiled wall behind her as she spoke. Clearly she was ready to have a good bitching session about the greaser girl. "Like, the other day, she totally gave Dan a blowjob behind the bleachers, and she doesn't even like him!" Flora raised her eyes at this newly acquired gossip, wondering how true the rumour actually was. Though she doubted the validity of this news, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Johnny. It must've felt horrible hearing rumours like that circulating around the school constantly.

"T-that's...that's crazy...why is Johnny still with her?"

Mandy shrugged, "Beats me. Anyways, if she, like, gives you anymore trouble lemme know...you're part of the cheer squad now, you're one of us, y'know?"

Flora nodded in reply, smiling slightly as Mandy departed. She felt rather flattered that Mandy seemed to have her back, as it was quite clear that she'd probably need it with Lola keeping an eye on her. Sure, Mandy didn't have the best reputation, nor was she known for being very kind, but Flora couldn't help but feel touched at the surprising kindness the cheerleader had shown her. Maybe she ought not to be so worried about Lola's threats after all.

Sighing, Flora wrapped her towel around her body tighter, deciding to head to the safety of her bedroom. No doubt Rose would want to hear all about her run in with the greaser girl.


End file.
